Thirty years ago, Lake Ponkapog in Hartwell was full of life. Many birds and animals lived beside the water which was full of fish. Now there are few birds, fish and animals. The lake water is polluted.
How did this happen? First, we must think about how water gets into Lake Ponkapog. When it rains, water comes into the lake from all around. In the past, there were forests all around Lake Ponkapog, so the rainwater was clean.
Now there are many homes around the lake. People often use chemicals in their gardens. They use other chemicals inside their houses for cleaning or killing insects. There are also many factories. Factories use chemicals to produce products and some chemicals fall onto the ground from cars or trucks. When it rains, the rainwater picks up all the chemicals from homes, factories, cars and trucks and then carries them into the lake. They pollute the water and kill the animals.
Boats on the lake are also a problem. Lake Ponkapog is a popular place for motorboats. But oil and gas from boats often leak（泄漏）into the lake. So more harmful chemicals go into the water in this way.
People in Hartwell are worried. They love their lake and want to save it. Will it be possible? A clean lake must have clean rainwater going into it. Clean rainwater is possible only if people are more careful about chemicals at home and at work. They must also be more careful about gas and oil and other chemicals on the ground. And they mustn't use motorboats any more on the lake. All these may change people's life. Only then can Lake Ponkapog be a beautiful, clean lake again.
