Lake Michigan sunset cruise for the Ludington's S.S. Badger

Lake Michigan has high levels of prescription drugs and other chemical compounds, a new study of lake water and sediment has revealed.

(MLive.com File Photo)

LANSING -- A study of Lake Michigan water near a major city's wastewater treatment plant revealed that high levels of common prescription drugs are infiltrating the lake and could have harmful effects for aquatic life.

The study was performed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and examined water samples taken near a Milwaukee water treatment plant and from the city's harbor, Environmental Health News reported.

Researchers found high levels of the anti-diabetes drug metformin, the anti-bacterial drug triclosan and the antibiotic sulfamethoxazole as well as high levels of caffeine in both water and sediment samples taken from the lake. In total, 38 different compounds were found in the samples in some concentration, including acetaminophen, testosterone, codeine and several antibiotics.

The compounds were detected as far as two miles away from the treatment plant's discharge point, the study states.

Environmental Health News quoted the study's senior author, Rebecca Klaper, a UW-Milwaukee professor, as saying the drugs could cause "“some serious near-shore impacts" for fish and other aquatic life in the lake.

The study was funded in part by a grant from the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.

Brian Smith is the statewide education and courts reporter for MLive. Email him at bsmith11@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook.