GREENSBORO – Light attendance of less than 10 people at a community forum to learn about a clean water project for the Caspian Lake public beach gave those at the Highland Center for the Arts, September 25, a chance to share their concerns and ideas.
Greensboro resident Will Marlier, Lake Watershed Program Specialist with the Orleans County Natural Resource Conservation District (OCNRCD), was joined by Dana Allen, with FluidState Consulting, the company that developed the Lake Watershed Action Plan in 2023.
Marlier said Allen has now been contracted to identify improvements that can be made at the public beach to benefit the lake’s water quality and shoreland habitat, leading to preliminary project designs, under the $10,875 contract.
Their presentation shared concerns about increased spring phosphorous levels that have doubled in the last 20 years and summer levels that have been trending upward, though both have been stabilizing in recent years.
Phosphorus, produced by various human activities, including grass, fecal matter and leaves, can decrease water quality, reduce water clarity and can lower lakeshore property values.
Management plans might include rain gardens, walking paths, better delineation of the beach, work to reduce stormwater runoff from the parking lot and boat launch and buffer plantings.
The dam is not to be included in the planning process they said.
Because the parking lot is relatively flat, runoff flows both into the lake and into the outlet brook, which can affect downstream water quality, so management of that runoff can be important, they said.
Development of the Lake Watershed Action Plan in 2022 and 2023 involved working with key town stakeholders and assessing 143 sites. 34 were prioritized for projects or other responses that could lead to a 148 pound per year reduction in phosphorus loading.
The current project, to develop preliminary designs, will continue into next year, with additional grant funding needed to develop a final design in 2026. Implementation would then be expected to begin in 2026 and continue into 2027.
Sarah Braese, the Hardwick Electric Department General Manager, spoke as the property owner, though the utility is a department of the Town of Hardwick. She said the board of commissioners has given its full support for the development of the project.
The range of people attending included swimmers and boaters, residents of Greensboro and Hardwick and at least one lakeshore property owner. Their comments and suggestions included parking management to avoid blocked-in cars and better parking for vehicles with trailers, especially on busy weekends. Work on the boat launch, including possible dredging, is a particular concern with this year’s low water levels. Marlier noted that paved surfaces can reduce phosphorous runoff.
Those attending seemed to agree that maintaining access for current users of the beach, lake and picnic area with its lawn, was important. Removal of a town trash can was noted as a possible contributor to more trash.
There was a discussion of the granite blocks dividing the parking area from the lawn above the beach and along the picnic area, with the need to evaluate how the pathways between them may affect erosion noted for study.
Winter access was mentioned as was what is done with winter snow, which Greensboro Select Board Chair MacNeil confirmed is plowed by the town.
The project will continue with additional opportunities to provide input, including some in Hardwick.
Will Marlier can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at (802) 624-7023.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
