The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Lake Pocotopaug problems in full bloom
Removing toxic algae could cost $10 million
EAST HAMPTON — It’s a problem in full bloom.
The Town Council heard this week from residents who live on or adjacent to Lake Pocotopaug, which for years has been plagued by toxic algae blooms.
A number of lakefront residents argue the blooms have reduced the value of their homes and have, in many cases, pushed for reduced valuations and a reduction in property assessments, while they and others call for increased spending to eliminate or at least reduce the problem.
When the council held a public meeting this week to hear residents’ concerns and report on steps the town is, or intends, to take, some 150plus residents crowded into the TBell Room at East Hampton High School, far exceeding the permissible limit of people in the room.
The overflow caused the council to shift the meeting to the adjacent auditorium.
Council Chairwoman Melissa H. Engel brought a cadre of town officials to respond to residents’ questions, including Jeremy Hall, the parks and recreation director, who also serves as the liaison to the Conservation and Lake Commission; Town Planner Jeremy DeCarli; Assessor Gail Gwiazdowski and director of finance and interim town manager Jeffrey M. Jylkka.
They in turn were
supported by George Knoecklein, a liminist (lake specialist) and Steven D. Trinkaus, a professional engineer who is working for the town to reduce infiltration of phosphorous and nitrogen into the lake.
In addition to sharing their expertise, Knoecklein and Trinkaus spoke about steps residents need to take to help clean up the lake.
Among information shared is that the bluegreen algae blooms are the result of increased levels of phosphorous and nitrogen in the lake; phosphorous is found in most lawn fertilizers.
Knoecklein developed a plan to try to minimize the phosphorus that is washed into the lake. In all, there are 25 individual sites around the lake that need to be remediated, Knoecklein said.
The town is relying on a state grant to begin implementing the plan.
However, Knoecklein said an application for permission to begin the process was not turned in on time by an employee of a company working onbehalf of the town.
The bluegreen algae blooms are the result of increased levels of phosphorous and nitrogen in the lake; phosphorous is found in most lawn fertilizers.
That prompted boos and shouted angry comments from several people in the audience.
Engel was quick to point out it was not the the town’s fault, adding that over the past 18 years the town has spent $62,000 a year to ameliorate conditions in the lake.
Joe Carbonell, vice chairman of the Conservation and Lake Commission, said it would take $9 million to $10 million to fully implement Knoecklein’s plan.
As residents digested that sum, Trinkaus offered lowcost suggestions residents could employ to help improve the health of the lake.
He urged those who live on the lake to let the last 10 to 12 feet closest to the lake to “grow up like a meadow,” thus creating “a filter strip.”
It would mean only cutting it twice a year and it would “help protect the lake.”
Trinkaus is working with Hall to develop a plan to create swales to limit the amount of water that can flow directly into the lake and thus carry excess fertilizer along with it.
But to create many of the swales would require the town to get easements across residents’ properties.
He called on residents to have their lawns tested to see what chemicals are needed, and then only to add small amounts of that chemical to address a specific need rather than using “onesizefitsall” fertilizer.
That provoked demands from some in the audience for tax breaks for those who adopt “best practices.”
One speaker called for the town to develop a list of approved landscapers who would promise to abide by the practices.
Those who did not would not be allowed to work in the town, the speaker suggested.
Another speaker called upon the town to engage with the Yale School of
Forestry to see what kind of outofthebox ideas the students could develop.
Another speaker demanded the council commit to allocating $250,000 a year for improvements to the lake and called for a bifurcated budget vote that would include a question supporting that allocation.
“This is going to be a very long, long process,” Councilor Sean Markham said, one that “could take 1015 years.”
While the vast majority of people at the meeting supported more funding for the lake, “There are a lot of people in town who don’t care about the lake,” Markham said.
Lakefront residents will have to answer a difficult question, he added.
If they demand state money to dredge the lake, that will mean “opening the lake to anyone,” Markham said.
That is something many lakefront residents have been unwilling to accept in the past, he noted.
“This is going to take a lot of money,” Councilor James “Pete” Brown said.
In turn, that means getting out and supporting the town budget.
“Sitting here taking shots doesn’t do it,” Brown said. “Action does.”