My Exercise Route Along The Lake Has Changed

living.boondockingmexico@yahoo.com

Like all good human beings, we have the ability to take what Mother Nature has given us and destroy it with the intention of personal gain.  That's what has happened to the Presa San Miguel (the lake in SMA).  

Here are two pictures taken the same day but four hours apart.  Yesterday was an extremely windy day with hopes it would rain.  It did attempt to sprinkle a bit but the gray just hung overhead without letting loose of that "liquido vital" that we all need and can't seem to get enough of. 

This picture was taken around noon on the 25th of January.  You can see that the lake is almost completely covered with water lilies.

The winds picked up early afternoon the same day.  This picture was taken at 4:30 p.m.  You can see that the wind has pushed the water lilies to one side of the lake.

The lake has always had water lilies but not to this extent.  There are several reasons that this is happening.  One is low levels of water causing the water to heat up more quickly.  There is also a lack of nitrogen and phosphorus in the water and the natural balance has been affected.  Add to this sewer discharge from different areas.

Water is being drained from the lake not only by users but also by corporate agriculture and cattle feedlots in the Cuenca del Rio Laja.  Cuenca means basin and here is a picture of the basin and just how much area depends on water that is taken from the river starving the lake and causing the increase in lily cover.

In the picture above the Cuenca is the light gray, San Miguel de Allende is the dark gray and of course, the blue is the Presa Allende or the lake.  As I said, corporate farmers and cattle production further upstream have taken most of the water.  

The major problem is the lack of water for the city and also those that depend on the lake for income.  The fishermen have had reduced catches as they can no longer throw their nets and tourism such as canoeing has been greatly affected.

As I go on my walks I can observe the changes taking place on a daily basis depending on water levels and climatic conditions.  The green is beautiful but it is destroying the natural balance of the lake and affecting all of us.  I'm not a big meat eater but I do know it takes a lot of water to produce a pound of flesh.  

This has been the current solution but they haven't returned since mid December 2021.