From the supervisor: A look at the lake
By Jim Lanning
Skaneateles Town Supervisor
The Skaneateles community had several forums recently to discuss the recent algae bloom on Skaneateles Lake. These were very productive sessions that helped to facilitate an educated dialogue on the issue. The most recent forum was generously hosted by Mike Falcone at the Hilton Garden Inn in Auburn. The Skaneateles Lake Association provided an excellent group of panelists to give accurate information. I want to thank Mr. Falcone for his generosity and his genuine concern for the lake.
Two factors contributing to the bloom have been overlooked. The first is the lack of wind that lasted for almost a week. I have lived here for almost 50 years and I have never experienced this phenomenon before. There are times when the lake is calm for a few hours but a week is unprecedented. How likely are we to experience this lengthy calm period again?
The second and more important issue that we face is the level of the lake. A good friend of mine FOILed the City of Syracuse for the historical lake level records dating back to 1980. For the entire decade of the 1980s the average water level never exceeded 861.75.
The average lake level has exceeded 861.75 for 13 of the past 15 years. This cannot be explained by precipitation and snow pack. The resulting shoreline erosion has been dramatic and extreme. Tons of material and nutrients have been “pulled” into the lake as a result.
I recently took a tour of the shoreline with a photographer who found hundreds of situations where the higher lake levels have caused mud slides and trees to fall into the lake. My office gets a phone call almost weekly about a shoreline erosion problem. This shoreline erosion was a major contributing factor to the nutrient loading that helped fuel the algae bloom.
My concern is that this new elevation will become the new normal. People will build boathouses and shoreline structures to this new level. Please remember that the lake level was artificially raised 150 years ago with the construction of the dam and the seawall.
The lake is now at a new higher level than it has been for thousands of years.
The City of Syracuse does an outstanding job with watershed protection, but the management of the lake levels needs to be reviewed as a result of the recent algae bloom.
Some property owners have considered a class action lawsuit to stop this shoreline erosion. Some lakefront property owners view the higher levels as a taking of property. I would like to avoid the litigation and discuss the lake levels cooperatively with the city. It is clear that the higher lake levels threatened the city’s water supply with toxins from the bloom.
My concern for the process of the dialogue on the lake is that it has been focused on the contributing factors so far. The next steps need to be action items that individuals need to practice to reduce nutrient loading. I have attended so many forums on climate change that discuss the doom and gloom of what will happen without putting forth any action items to help people change course. One of my most frustrating municipal events is a meeting that produces nothing more than the next meeting date.
Here are some action items that I believe will start us in the right direction. Avoid adding fertilizers that contain nitrogen or phosphorous. Use vegetative buffering to slow the water runoff and erosion from your property. Create swales that slow the progression of storm water. Lobby the City of Syracuse for better lake elevation practices.
What ideas do you have? Please share them.
