Let us not ignore the significance of all the ponds, ditches and streams say a group of 20 scientists to the UK government's 'Natural Capital' committee

Nearly 11 years after being treated, the Behlendorfer See near the city of Lübeck in Northern Germany is still reaping the benefits of Phoslock. The 63ha, 15m deep lake, which received a single treatment in 2009, had suffered from nutrient enrichment for many years from its predominantly agricultural catchment. As a result, the lake experienced regular blue-green algal blooms which led to a reduced aquatic plant community. Consequently, the lake was not meeting European legislation for ‘good ecological status’ outlined by the Water Framework Directive (WFD).  Several catchment management measures were initiated to help improve its water quality. However, the impact of years’ worth of nutrients entering the lake had taken its toll and the lake failed to recover due to ongoing release of phosphorus from the lake sediments, a process called internal loading. A Phoslock application of 214 tonnes was applied in in December 2009 to an area of approximately 40ha which was deeper than 7m.