The Chautauqua Lake Partnership, Inc. (CLP), hosted a tent with posters at the July 14, 2018, Antique and Classic Boat Show in Bemus Point. Click here to view the charts and information on display.
Charts include a summary of all CLP project status with focus on:
- Completion of the 6 month/$250,000 Town of Ellery (Lead Agency) Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
- Submission of 2018 herbicide treatment permit applications by the Towns of Ellery, North Harmony, Busti and Ellicott and the Village of Celoron
- Herbicide treatment offshore five Chautauqua Lake communities which were permitted and for which local funding was obtained
Included on the posters was a photo of Bemus Bay with the suggestion, “While at the Boat Show, take a ride through weed-free Bemus Bay”.
Yes, the treated portions of Bemus Bay are free of the invasive weeds which dominated the aquatic environment as recently as early summer 2017. This summer, County residents and visitors are enjoying weed- and odor-free swimming, skiing, boating, fishing and general enjoyment of the lake in the five areas treated as shown on the maps in the poster chart set (attached).
The Chautauqua Lake Association (CLA), suspended Bemus Bay weed cutting and near shore and shoreline cleanup in mid-June, 2017, prior to the 2017 herbicide treatment, over 13 months ago. As a result of this suspension and removal of the invasive weeds near the surface which are subject to propeller chop, there have been almost no weed fragments floating near shore or deposited on the shoreline in Bemus Bay. The minimal amounts of near shore and shoreline fragments are now coming from other parts of the lake.
We’ve heard the same positive story from members of other communities which received treatment this year: Sunset Bay, Bly Bay, Sunrise Cove/Ashville Bay,
offshore the Town of Busti, locations highlighted with light blue crosshatch on the poster maps.
Comments from those stopping by the CLP tent and sending emails to the CLP website have been of two types:
From those who received 2018 herbicide treatments, we’ve received only thanks for including their community’s offshore in the SEIS and permitapplications and for making the lake so that they can, for the first time in recent memory or ever:
- Swim without getting tangled in the weeds
- Fish without losing hooks, worms and lures
- Boat without getting stuck
- Enjoy the near shore and lake shore and lake without the foul odor and obstruction of masses of decaying weeds
From those who did not receive 2018 herbicide treatments we’ve been asked:
- Why their communities didn’t receive the treatments?
- What they must do to get herbicide treatments in 2019?
The answer to the first question is that areas proposed for treatment were not treated because of (1) failure to receive DEC permits, (2) DEC permit conditions which rendered the treatment ineffective, (3) lack of government funding and (4) insufficient community/municipality support to propose treatment.
It follows, therefore, that the key to continuing a Chautauqua Lake herbicide treatment program into 2019, and, hopefully, developing and implementing an optimal weed management program with targeted herbicide treatments and impact-mitigated harvesting, is grassroots community action by year-round and summer residents and visitors. This action includes garnering support among residents and lobbying representatives to support herbicide treatment.
The CLP will be providing specific suggestions on how to implement that community action within the next few days. The actions recommended must begin immediately,
before the summer is over and many leave for the season. A portion of the CLP’sLabor Day Rally (see below) will be dedicated to reporting out on these activities. We suggest getting members of your community to attend the Rally as a group.
Please attend the County’s Chautauqua Lake Rally on August 18, 2018, 9:00 am –noon, and, especially, the CLP’s Labor Day Rally on Saturday, September 1, 9:00- 11:00 am, both at The Village Casino in Bemus Point. You’ll learn about what theCLP and other lake organizations have been doing on behalf of the lake and have an opportunity to comment on what’s been done and what you’d like to see in the future. You have a voice!
Chautauqua Lake Partnership, Inc.
Officers, Board Members and Advisors
E-Mail: [email protected]
USPS: PO Box 337, Bemus Point, NY 14712 Website: www.chqlake.org