News & Opinion About Huletts Landing, N.Y.
As I’ve shared earlier, the Lake George Association is running a series of ads this summer spotlighting individuals who are contributing to improving the quality of Lake George.
This is a great series because it demonstrates that anyone and everyone can help in the effort.
I’ll run all of these ads in the weeks ahead.
Here is Cathy LaBombard’s LGA ad. (Click on the picture to follow the link.)
Can our Huletts people recognize the spot??
Over 30 people, including many children, enjoyed having the Lake George Association’s Floating classroom come to Huletts today.
The Friends of Historic Huletts Landing sponsored today’s visit by the LGA’s Floating Classroom.
Everyone had a great time and learned much about the lake’s ecology.
Thanks go out to everyone at the LGA, FHHL, and even the participants, for making this great event happen.
(Click on image to see full-scale.)
The Huletts Landing Property Owners Civic Association made repairs to the wall on their beach property yesterday.
Know any good mural artists? The cracks have been filled and the wall is now flat.
Click image to see full scale.
The Lake George Association’s Floating Classroom, will return to Huletts on Friday, July 22nd at 10:00 am, courtesy of the Friends of Historic Huletts Landing who is sponsoring this event.
A donation of at least $10 is suggested to help defray the $300 cost. The sign up sheet is in the Post Office and will be required ahead of time, as space is limited to 25-30 people.
So if you missed the excursion last summer, please plan on attending the trip this Friday!
Looking directly across Lake George from Huletts, it appeared that something looked different this summer.
Then I realized something was different. Sometime since the summer of 2010, a ridge very close to Deer’s Leap collapsed and fell down the mountain.
Here is a view from the middle of Lake George with the area circled in red.
Here is a view by boat from closer in, looking up. You can see the outcropping left is a different color.
Looks like it wiped out some trees as it fell.
Rocks and boulders litter the area underneath.
Click on the images to see full scale.
On Saturday of July 16, the Wildlife Conservation Society will be conducting an annual loon census with the help of local Adirondack residents and visitor volunteers. This data provides a quick glimpse of the status of the breeding loon population in and around the Adirondack Park and across New York State. The results help guide management decisions and policies that affect loons.
The Lake George Association is coordinating census volunteers for the Lake George region. Potential volunteers Census volunteers will monitor a selected portion of the Lake from 8 – 9 am, and report the number of adult loons, chicks, and immature loons they observe. Similar loon censuses are also conducted in other states throughout the Northeast at the same time on the same day, contributing to a thorough regional overview of the population’s current status.
One of the major findings of the 2010 census: The Adirondack loon population has almost doubled since the last pre-census analysis in the 1980s, and now totals some 1,500-2,000 birds.
If you would like to help count and observe the loons, please contact the Lake George Association at 518-668-3558, or info@lakegeorgeassociation.org
The Lake George Association is running a number of advertisements this summer focusing on lake-saving projects they have been involved with over the last few years.
I’ll run some of these after they appear, but I’m happy to announce that one of the ads focuses on their work on Foster Brook in 2009. You’ll remember that this project was named by the Huletts Current as the story of the year for Huletts Landing for 2009.
So if you click on the picture above, you can see the LGA’s new ad, featuring yours truly.
Dean Moore, (pictured at left), and Josh Davis, both from the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District, conduct a bathymetric survey of the delta at Hague Brook. Standing more than 150 feet from shore, Josh is measuring water depth (here about three feet) while Dean notes the GPS location. This survey produces a map of the depth of the water at various points on the delta, and helps the LGA access the volume of sediment that would potentially need to be removed, in this case about 27,000 cubic yards (over 5,000 dump trucks full!)
The Lake George Association is moving forward with a long-term effort to remove several deltas on the Lake. The LGA is examining alternative methods for dredging deltas located at the mouths of three major brooks on the west side of the Lake: Finkle brook in Bolton, Hague brook in Hague and Indian brook in Bolton. The LGA has spent years examining these watersheds and working on upland projects on these brooks.
“With any project of this magnitude a number of partners and steps are required,” said Walt Lender, executive director of the Lake George Association. “This week we completed the public comment period for the development of the scope of a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Essentially, this is the first round of opportunity for public input on the general scope of the proposal. Next we will complete a draft detailing exactly how and what we propose to do, and the public will have a longer period to comment on that – usually a minimum of 30 days,” he added.
The Department of Environmental Conservation, in accordance with the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) requires impact statements to be prepared and presented to the public for comment before a project like this can be implemented. The original environmental impact statement, covering all deltas on the lake, was approved back in 2004 by the Lake George Park Commission. In this statement only two methods of removing the sediment in the deltas were discussed: 1. conventional mechanical removal from a barge, and 2. hydraulic removal. Preparation of a supplemental impact statement to this original statement became necessary because now the LGA would like to examine alternative methods for dredging. The supplemental statement will also address the environmental impact of these other methods. The particular methods detailed in the supplemental statement are:
1. Mechanical dredging from access pads. The access pads would be constructed from dredged material;
2. In-water mechanical dredging; and
3. Suction dredging.
“We want to arrive at a definitive solution for removal of these deltas: one that we all can live with and one that is vetted through an open public process,” said Randy Rath, LGA’s project manager. “The deltas are certainly a result of damage caused by human interaction with the watershed, and it is up to us to reverse this damage. We just need to agree on what the best, most environmentally appropriate method will be,” he added.
The LGA has successfully completed similar dredging projects on Lake George, most recently the 2009 project at Foster Brook in Huletts Landing. This project greatly improved navigation, removed 1500 cubic yards of sediment, and largely restored the lake bottom. The fishery has greatly benefited, as the smelt started running again in the brook in 2010, after years of not running. Working behind a double set of turbidity curtains, the contractor completed the work in less than two weeks.
“We are very sensitive to the environmental risks that are inherent in these projects, and we painstakingly apply numerous measures to protect the sensitive ecosystem and maintain water quality,” said Walt Lender, LGA Executive Director. “On projects where the LGA has been involved, we have witnessed remarkable contrasts between the water in the project area and the water in the main lake on the outside of the turbidity curtains. We keep the water in the main lake clear and contain the stirred up water within a series of carefully installed and maintained rows of sediment curtain. Before removing the curtains, we give the water in the project area sufficient time to settle out. Once it’s clear we remove the curtains,” he said.
At Finkle Brook (Bolton), the LGA, and its project partners, expect to remove approximately 8,000 cubic yards of sediment over a roughly three-acre area. At Hague Brook, plans call for removing approximately 27,000 cubic yards of material from an approximately ten-acre area. And at Indian Brook (Bolton), removing approximately 25,000 cubic yards of sediment over an approximately eight-acre area is proposed.
On each one of these delta dredging projects, the LGA has asked the municipalities to certify that identified upstream problem areas are remediated, and the municipalities have passed resolutions in support of the projects. On Hague Brook, two sediment retention ponds were created, through the joint efforts of the LGA, the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District and the town of Hague. By slowing down the velocity of the water in the streams, these sediment ponds allow the sediment to drop out, preventing it from going into the Lake and adding to the deltas. Creating and maintaining sediment ponds is much easier, much less expensive, and much less complex than removing deltas.
This map created using data from the bathymetric survey of the Hague Delta shows water depths at one-foot intervals (green lines), and their distance from the shoreline. The project proposes to dredge this delta up to a four-foot depth (the blue line). (This image was created by the LGA from a map supplied by the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District.)
SolarCity and Google announced the creation of a new $280 million fund to finance residential solar projects.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M5k6dc9W40
The Huletts Landing cell tower takes shape, as seen from in front of the Post Office. (Click on image to see full scale.)
If you stand in front of the Huletts Landing Post Office, you will see something new along the ridge line, as you look up toward the mountain. That’s right. It’s the new Huletts cell tower. I will have some more on this shortly but here is an image if you haven’t been in Huletts for awhile.
Can you hear me now? Almost.
An emerald ash borer detection box sits at the top of the mountain. (Click to see full screen.)
As I stated in my earlier post about the Emerald Ash Borer (see below), the large purple triangular-shaped objects you see hanging in an area ash trees are important detection tools being used in this effort to see if the Emerald Ash Borer is in the area. These “purple traps” are 24 inches long and covered in glue, and it is important that they not be touched, removed or disturbed. The picture above is one hanging on top of the mountain as you enter Huletts.
Please do not be alarmed if you see them, they do not indicate that the insect is here, they are placed throughout towns in NY to see if the EAB is spreading. So far none have been found locally.
The Emerald Ash Borer has a greenish metallic coat.
Photo credit for above picture: David Cappaert, Michigan State University Bugwood.org
First discovered in New York in 2009, the Emerald Ash Borer threatens the more than 900 million ash trees in Upstate New York and the timber and lumber business that they support. Eighteen counties have been placed in a quarantine zone due to EAB infestations.
The EAB infests and kills North American ash trees, including green, white, black and blue ash. Ash is a common and important forest species. Ash seeds are a food source for birds and mammals and ash is a commercially-valuable species, used for baseball bats, flooring, furniture, lumber, and pallet manufacture.
“There are approximately 800,000 ash trees in the Lake George watershed,” said Kristen Rohne, the watershed educator for the Lake George Association. “We don’t want to find out what would happen to our watershed and our water quality without these trees,” she said. The larval stage of EAB feeds under the bark of trees, cutting off the flow of water and nutrients. Infested trees always die within two to four years, even if the trees were healthy before being attacked.
Public involvement is key to detecting the EAB. Most common in June and July, the EAB is very small – just 3/8 to 5/8 inches long with metallic green wing covers. Signs of tree infection include: 1/8″ D-shaped holes in the bark; tree canopy dieback; and serpentine galleries — S-shaped feeding tunnels, often with larvae, just under the bark. Sucker sprouts may grow from the base of the tree.
The EAB is now located in Cattaraugus, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Steuben, Ulster and Greene counties. A quarantine affecting the majority of western New York, as well as Greene and Ulster Counties, is restricting the movement of ash trees, ash products and firewood from all wood species in order to limit the potential introduction of EAB to other areas of the state.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, alongside state departments of agriculture, are cooperating partners in an EAB survey effort. The large purple triangular-shaped objects you may see hanging in an area ash trees are important detection tool being used in this effort. These “purple traps” are 24 inches long and covered in glue, and it is important that they not be touched, removed or disturbed.
What Can You Do to Help?
1. Look for signs of infestation and report them immediately by calling the Lake George Association at 518-668-3558.
2. Don’t move firewood. The EAB is commonly transported to new areas on firewood. “Please remember to leave all firewood at home; do not bring it to campgrounds, parks or summer homes,” says Kristen Rohne, the LGA’s watershed educator.
3. Purchase firewood from a local vendor, and ask for a receipt to verify the firewood’s local source. Firewood must remain within 50 miles of its source.
4. Only firewood labeled as meeting New York’s heat-treatment standards to kill pests may be transported further than 50 miles from the firewood’s source.
5. Don’t disturb the purple EAB traps, which you may see hanging from trees this summer.
All trees are important in the ecosystem and logging is important to the local economy. Tree leaves and branches intercept rainfall, reducing its erosive energy and slowing the movement of rain water. Root growth of trees and plant litter improve soil structure and enhance infiltration of rainfall, reducing surface runoff. Trees supply debris to streams, and provide shade to keep the water temperature cool, improving aquatic habitats. Trees even filter contaminants. They keep excess phosphorus and nitrates – found as pollutants in runoff – from entering waters by using them as nutrients for their own growth.
U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer is a proponent of maintaining current levels of funding for invasive species research.
Replacing impermeable asphalt with permeable pavers can significantly reduce stormwater runoff problems on steep sites, while enhancing the aesthetics of any landscaping project.
The Lake George Association’s Lake-friendly Living Open House on Saturday, June 4 at the LGA office, 2392 State Rt. 9N, Lake George. It will host over 15 “green technology” exhibitors. Experts in lake-friendly landscaping, permeable pavement, and alternative septic systems will be on hand from 10 am – 2 pm, to share information and advice. The event is free and open to the public.
Who will be exhibiting?
Representatives and installers for:
Permeable pavers and pavement: Belgard, Tehno-Bloc, Unilock and Flexi-pave;
Alternative septic systems: Puraflo, Orenco and Eljen;
And others: Fiddlehead Creek Native Plant Nursery, DeFranco Landscaping, Gould’s Landscaping, Green Planet Products, Chip’s Landscaping, KLC Property Enhancement, Sweeney Company, and Crandall Excavating.
Experts from the LGA, Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District, and the Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board will provide information about lake-friendly lawn care, septic system maintenance, and more. Rain barrels and native plants will be available for sale. Free soil pH-testing will be available.
“We are excited that so many regional companies will be on hand for people to meet. We’ll have product representatives, civil engineers, designers, installers and other people who work in green landscaping here to share information and brainstorm solutions for lake-friendly living,” said Emily DeBolt, director of education for the Lake George Association.
For more information contact the LGA at 518-668-3558. In addition, the LGA’s new website has extensive information on the topic. Visit www.lakegeorgeassociation.org and search on “lake-friendly living.”