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THE NEW TANNER THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2005 Is Fairy Lake reve By Hartley Coles Another major summer storm last Friday afternoon (Aug. 19) caused wide- spread damage to trees, flooded basements and caused lighting strikes at some homes. It also sent streams cascading over their banks, includ- ing Acton's School creek which turned into a torrent of brown water as it rushed along its course into Fairy Lake, flooding property on the north bank, west of Highway 7. It's the second time the creek has ram- paged this summer. Theo Ancker, who owns the property on the south side of the creek, has seen many storms raise the creek to abnormal levels over the decades but he has become increasingly alarmed at the amount of brown water flowing into Fairy Lake. Brown water indicates the creek is picking up soil along its course and dumping it into the lake which only a scant 40 years ago was dredged to eliminate the accumulation of soil which had built up over the years. The build- up of soil smothered the spring which helped feed the lake. Dredging, which cost hundred of thousands of dollars, was a project of the then Credit Valley Con- servation Authority. It took place over a two year span, all part of a scheme to retain water in the upper reaches of the Credit River, of which Fairy Lake, Black THOMPSON Ora Cela Ves eam Dr. Dave de Melo D.C. Deanna Wilson B.Sc., D.Ch. Foot Specialist Naomi Bedell R.M.T. Registered Massage Therapy 25 Main Street North, Acton Across from Giant Tiger Plaza (519) 853-3460 Serving Acton, Georgetown, Rockwood & Guelph [_SPSPSrreserrssrereterteen rT v 1 EVENING APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE f Flash floods like this one where the School Creek flows rting back to marshland? under Main St. N. = brings tons of sediment into Fairy Lake. Main St., resident Theo Ancker, whose land abuts the creek says it is gradually undoing improvements made by dredg- ing in the 1960's. Creek and School Creek are tributaries. It also im- proved water quality. The way Theo Ancker sees it, unless there is some sort of remedial action taken soon the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on dredging in the '60s will have been a waste be- cause the silt carried by the school creek is again chok- ing up Fairy Lake. Another dredging job would cost far more than the 1960's project which was in 1960 dollars, Mr. Ancker notes. The Ancker's property, which fronts along Main St. N. and follows the creek boundary, also in- cludes part of the stream, which flows under High- way 7 ona westerly course with Rotary Park and the Town's Dog Run before flowing into the lake. Much of Rotary Park was part of a large marsh which extended beyond the present eastern boundaries of the lake beside Rotary Park. Dredging opened up the marsh as part of the main body of the land. It also opened up several springs which had been suppressed by silt lodged in the marsh inhabited by lots of mud turtles, musk- rats, bulrushes and other denizens of a swamp. Mr: Ancker says he has tried to notify the proper ex 55. (Total 297 Take a test drive and THe 2006s ARE NOW ARRIVING! TOTAL CARE OWNERSHIP COVERAGE + 5-YEAR/100,000 KM WORRY-FREE COMPREHENSIVE WARRANTY" + 5-YEAR/100,000 KM POWERTRAIN WARRANTY + 5-YEAR/100,000 KM EXTRA CARE ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE MSRP $26,005" 2005 SEDONA + 3.5 L V6 engine + 5-speed automatic + 4-wheel ABS + 2nd row captain's seats + Front & rear A/C PLUS ENTER TO desesesese HIGHEST SAFETY. RATING POSSIBLE! UP TO 60 A TRIP TO AUSTRALIA MONTHS Eluccco Aregna® Kia Motors 314 Guelph Street, Georgetown, Ont. 905-877-7818 authorities of conditions which exist during storms and spring runoff but has invariably run into a stone wall, starting with local councillors and Halton Region. The problem, he says, is that the large run- off with brown water has subsided before anyone from a distance can arrive. The creek, a torrent for a couple of hours, subsides and returns to normal but not before it has carried a large amount of silt into the lake, a condition which probably exists also with the other streams which feed Fairy Lake. Fairy Lake is a man- made lake as described by Credit Valley Conservation (CVC). It has existed since 1830 when the Adams brothers, Acton's found- ers, harnessed the waters of the Black Creek to cre- ate a mill pond to run a flour mill and a sawmill. Colloquially it was long . known as "The Pond" even though an early Acton resi- dent, Sarah Secord dubbed it with the more attractive name, Fairy Lake, over 140 years ago. It's likely the Black Creek of 1830 swelled into some sort-of pond or lake along its route before the Adams built a dam to hold back the wa- ter because several other streams flowed into Black Creek along its circuitous route. In any event the lake not only was harnessed for mill power but Beardmore and Co. built a pipeline from the lake and used the water to assist in the tanning process. The pipeline, according to estimates, could drain as high as 500,000 imperial gallons a day. Translated into litres, that's close to 2,255,000 a day. When Beardmore ceased operation in 1986 and the pipeline was no longer was required various govern- ment agencies insisted there was a water shortage in Acton and no further growth would be allowed. Old timers snorted in dis- belief. What happened to the 500,000 gallons a day Beardmore used to use? they asked. Still a moot question. The lake, of course, no longer serves an indus- trial purpose but has been a source of recreation, winter and summer, since it was first dammed up by the Adams. At one time it was a resource for ice, cut into blocks during the winter months, and stored for residents to use in the ice boxes during the summer. For those only familiar with refrig- erators, ice boxes were the "Fridge's" forerunner with a container for ice on top and container for food below. It served its purpose. Providentially, there have always been people in power who have ap- preciated the recreation and ascetic value of Fairy Lake. They have tried to make the lake and adjoin- ing Prospect and Rotary Parks places of civic pride. Few villages, towns or cit- ies have similar features and Acton has been called the "jewel of Halton Hills" because of its unique heri- tage. Mr. Ancker's worry about the lake's future is no doubt one many of us share.