Intro
PONDBRITE is a highly effective bactericide, algaecide. However, PONDBRITE is specifically designed for domestic use to combat cyanobacteria (blue-green algae), algae, and bacteria in small water bodies, like square culture ponds, lagoons, dugouts, reservoirs, fountains, ornamental ponds, water gardens, and decorative water features. PONDBRITE can be safely applied to fish and aquatic life-bearing water bodies with appropriate rate and precautions.
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PONDBRITE
- disperses evenly throughout the water column, it does not precipitate
- shows its best bactericide, cyanobactericide, and algaecide activities at 0.05 ppm level copper concentrations.
- apply in late spring or early summer when algae first appear
- equally effective at higher temperature as well as lower temperature
- application rates vary with higher algae density and growth, hard or turbid water, and flowing water
- When there is uncertainty about the dosage, begin with a lower dose and increase until control is achieved, or until the maximum allowable level has been reached.
- When possible, treat algae on a sunny day when the heavy mats of filamentous algae are most likely to be floating on the surface where they can be sprayed directly
- Physical removal of large mats prior to application gives the best results.
- The ionic copper level is monitored regularly for ensuring a minimum copper residual in the water.
- Begin treatment along the shore and proceed outwards in bands to allow fish to move into untreated areas.
For applications in water containing fish, do not exceed 0.4 ppm copper in the total water body
How It Works
In Aquaculture Waters:
OCION recommends the following precautions to be taken when treating waters containing fish and other aquatic life using PondBrite. Before treating fish-bearing water bodies, it is important to measure
• total alkalinity (> 50 ppm)
• pH (≥6.5)
• dissolved organic carbon, DOC (>3.0 ppm)
Toxicity of copper to fish increases as total alkalinity (not hardness) and pH decreases. If the total alkalinity is less than 50 ppm, copper toxicity to fish increases and there is an increased risk of killing copper-sensitive fish like Trout or Salmon. The alkalinity of the water can be raised by the addition of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3).
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It is nearly impossible to offer simple guideline for toxic and safe levels of copper exposure to fish. It is due to the fact that copper bioavailability and toxicity are affected by many variables such as species, life stage, temperature, pH, total alkalinity, hardness, salinity, and dissolved organic carbon (DOC). It is important for applicators and culturists to be familiar with the factors that affect copper toxicity so that problems can be anticipated and avoided in certain situations.
When treating ponds with resident Salmon and Trout, POLYPRO should be added in a series of smaller doses to reach the target over 2-3 days. Dissolved copper (Cu2+) levels should be frequently monitored (twice a day) during initial corrective treatment and maintained at concentrations no higher than 0.04-0.06 ppm copper within the entire water body after the initial treatment.
For fish containing waters, use a surface spray corrective application at the initial outset of an algae bloom. Before treatment, determine the influencing parameters stated above. Spray pre-diluted POLYPRO solution (1: 10 dilution) near or directly on the area supporting algae growth. This is usually in the top meter, on the surface, or in shallow waters where the temperature is higher. POLYPRO may be applied as a surface spray by boat or from the shoreline.
Contact your OCION distributor for additional application information pertaining to specific fish species.
Controlling BLUE-GREEN ALGAE:
Cyanobacterial cells contain toxic microcystin and other cyanotoxins. When the cell is lysed by algaecides treatment or by natural and unnatural factors in their life cycle, microcystin is subsequently released in water and adversely affects the health of humans, animals, and aquatic life. The presence of cyanobacteria in freshwater increases the occurrence of cyanotoxins in the surrounding environment regardless of their existence inside or outside the cells. Therefore, preventing the recurrence of a cyanobacteria bloom is equally important as treating them as early in the season as possible. This would ensure the production of microcystin be kept minimum or near zero in the future.
Microcystin can be naturally biodegraded by a group of microcystin-degrading bacteria. The optimal physical and chemical conditions such as temperature (20 – 27°C) and pH (7) accelerate the process. PondBrite offers the following sensible, conservative, targeted treatment for cyanobacteria blooms. Maintaining the water bodies with only a ppb amount of ionic copper (Cu2+) prevents future blooms. The selective treatment not only allows the cyanobacteria to slowly release the cyanotoxins into the water but also does not target the indigenous microcystin-degrading bacteria in the same environment.
Applying a selective low dose of ionic copper (0.03 – 0.3 ppm) of PondBrite to the cyanobacteria bloom is the most economical and effective approach to controlling and removing the microcystin for water treatment plants and recreational lakes.
Full algae bloom should be treated at the recommended concentrations with a waiting period of 48 hours before it is allowed to use for any human activities. It is important to understand that a large algae bloom will naturally increase microcystin concentration upon treatment. In addition, the treatment also accelerates the release of microcystin. Therefore, a 48-hour period is required for the degradation of microcystin released during the treatment. It is important to keep humans and animals away from the treated areas during the treatment and until at least 48 hours after treatment. When there is a potential for microcystin contamination in a water system, it is important that operators monitor the microcystin level in the water to ensure that they meet their regulatory guidelines for human activity. When using PondBrite, a 0.03 ppm minimum ionic copper concentration should be maintained to protect from further algae growth in the flowing water. This will also protect against most algae species and bacteria that may be coming back into the system from untreated sources.
Environment
Treatment of algae and aquatic weeds can result in oxygen loss when the dead algae and weeds start to decompose. This is due to the fact that the production of oxygen from photosynthesis goes down and the oxygen demand for degradation goes up. This oxygen loss can suffocate fish and pond life. Read More...
To minimize this hazard,
• Begin treatment along the shore and proceed outwards in bands to allow the fish to move into untreated areas. Treat ¼ – ⅓ of the water body at a time, using surface spray application, and wait at least 2 days between treatments. Treating areas separately allows fish time to swim away from the application area and minimizes the risk of oxygen depletion. Have emergency aeration available. Use a minimum re-treatment interval of 14 days once the entire water body has been treated.
• The best method for controlling algae is with the minimum copper rate at the early in the algae bloom season. If algae are recurrent, increase the rate to 0.18 ppm. Gradually increase the ionic copper level as necessary to achieve the control but do not exceed a resulting ionic copper concentration of 1.0 ppm in the treated water at any time.
• Take into consideration that copper demand is higher as biomass concentration is higher. The concentration of ionic copper decreases as it reacts with algae and organic content. Hence, copper levels decrease upon contact with algae, and as the copper travels down the water column bound copper concentration levels are no longer toxic for fish.
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