Randy :

Welcome to the PB forum. Often people refer to tea colored water as tannic or black water. It is common in swamps and bogs. This is usually associated with oak (and other hard woods) as it contains tannins. While tannic water is tea colored it is still easy to see through to several feet deep it is just dark colored. Tannic water is acidic (ph range 4-6) as it is formed by the tannic acid in the watershed and its leaves , limbs ect. pH values lower than 7 are considered acidic, while pH values higher than 7 are considered alkaline. With your water being slightly basic (8) and with an alka of 120 I question if the color is a result of tannins. I suggest you have the water and pond dirt tested. Your parish extension agent should be able to help. If you can give us more info like watershed details or general location it would help. Below is a link to parish ag offices who can help.

http://www.lsuagcenter.com/en/our_offices/parishes/