Milfoil found in Lake Placid; group gauges extent of problem
HEATHER SACKETT, News Staff Writer
LAKE PLACID — Shore owners and invasive-plant biologists took to the water this weekend in an attempt to gauge the severity of a recently discovered milfoil outbreak in Lake Placid.
Lake Placid Shore Owners’ Association President Mark Wilson said the largest patch, located in six-to-eight-foot-deep water in Paradox Bay, is about as big as a football field. On Sunday, Wilson and several other volunteers mapped the patch and placed buoys on the eastern edge of the patch, alerting boaters to stay clear of it. If the milfoil gets chopped up by a boat’s motor, the broken pieces can spread and form new colonies.
Wilson said there are about 12 more smaller satellite patches in and around Paradox Bay.
Milfoil is an invasive species that chokes out native plants and animals and impairs recreational uses of waterways. If left unchecked, the plant could clog residents’ intake pipes for drinking water.
Wilson said Paradox Bay is likely the original site of the infestation. The shallow waters of the bay are nutrient-rich from storm runoff and provide a good habitat for milfoil.
Sue Riggins, past president of the Shore Owner’s Association, said another shore owner first discovered a floating fragment of the invasive plant about two weeks ago in the eastern portion of the lake. Although other area lakes, including Lake Flower, Long Lake and Raquette Lake, harbor the plant, Lake Placid had remained free of it until now.
“We were hoping there was something about Lake Placid that made it inhospitable (to milfoil),” Riggins said. “Wrong. It’s here.”
Volunteers trolled the bay near the village boat launch Friday, pulling up slimy, green clumps of the plant with a “water weasel” rake. Volunteers collected 15 samples of the plant, which has been tentatively identified as variable-leaf milfoil. The samples will be sent to a Wisconsin lab for further testing to confirm the type of strain.
Paddling a kayak, Tyler Smith, aquatics coordinator for the Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program, found the outer corners of the patch and entered his locations into a GPS unit. He said the largest bed has probably been there for three to five years.
“This has been here for a while,” Smith said. “It’s thriving.”
But Wilson said that at the time the last extensive survey of Paradox Bay was done — three years ago — there was no milfoil.
“So basically we have a three-year-old growing like a five-year-old,” he said. “The size of the large patch precludes any thought of hand harvesting. It’s just way too large.”
One option that has been successful in other areas is using a benthic mat, which is a large, opaque tarp that is placed on the bottom of a lake. It blocks out sunlight and smothers the plants. Wilson said he does not know how much eradicating the milfoil will cost.
The milfoil was almost certainly brought to Lake Placid through one of the two public boat launches on the southeastern shore of the lake. For the past several years, there has been a lake steward at the state Department of Environmental Conservation boat launch at the Lake Placid Marina to inspect boats for invasives, but the less-used Lake Placid village boat launch on Victor Herbert Road is not watched as carefully and does not have a facility for cleaning boats before they go into the lake. Earlier this month, the SOA received permission from the village Board of Trustees to place a water steward at the village boat launch. The group is still looking for the funds to do that.
For the past couple of years, Captain Marney’s, a Paradox Bay boat rental business, has used its boats on both Lake Flower and Lake Placid, but business partner Gary Bishop said there is no chance the milfoil could have been transported from Lake Flower on his boats.
“Every time I transport a boat, I take it to my house and pressure wash it with soap,” he said. “I always do that. I care about this lake. I’m really concerned about it.”
Bishop noted that the lake steward at the DEC boat launch is not there early in the morning or in the evening, so not all boats entering at that site are inspected.
But now is not the time to point fingers, Wilson said. Working quickly with village and town of North Elba officials will be essential to getting the milfoil outbreak under control.
“It’s going to be a collaboration of all three bodies and coordinating our efforts,” he said.
For now, the SOA is working on educating people about the problem. Wilson planned on posting flyers this morning on the docks and boathouses of Paradox Bay, asking boaters to avoid the large patch. Enforcing a five-miles-per-hour rule inside the bay will also be helpful to minimize the breaking apart of the plant. Wilson said the SOA board of trustees met on Saturday and decided a low-altitude fly-over of the lake might be necessary to see exactly where and how big the patches of milfoil are.
“The plants create a shadow on the bottom that is fairly telltale,” he said. “We will do that soon.”
Although the fact that the cold waters of Lake Placid are not very conducive to plant growth provides some encouragement that the problem can be nipped in the bud, Wilson said floating milfoil fragments have been found as far away from Paradox Bay as the eastern tip of Buck Island.
“That is frightening,” he said. “The clock is ticking on this.”
Wilson, a Saranac Lake resident who has spent part of nearly every summer of his life on Lake Placid, said his first reaction to the discovery of milfoil was not alarm but sorrow.
“I felt a real sadness,” he said. “I love this lake. ... Hopefully, we can act quickly to get this thing under control as quickly as possible.”
POSTED: July 2, 2009
Photos
Lake Placid Shore Owners’ Association President Mark Wilson said the largest patch, located in six-to-eight-foot-deep water in Paradox Bay, is about as big as a football field. On Sunday, Wilson and several other volunteers mapped the patch and placed buoys on the eastern edge of the patch, alerting boaters to stay clear of it. If the milfoil gets chopped up by a boat’s motor, the broken pieces can spread and form new colonies.
Wilson said there are about 12 more smaller satellite patches in and around Paradox Bay.
Milfoil is an invasive species that chokes out native plants and animals and impairs recreational uses of waterways. If left unchecked, the plant could clog residents’ intake pipes for drinking water.
Wilson said Paradox Bay is likely the original site of the infestation. The shallow waters of the bay are nutrient-rich from storm runoff and provide a good habitat for milfoil.
Sue Riggins, past president of the Shore Owner’s Association, said another shore owner first discovered a floating fragment of the invasive plant about two weeks ago in the eastern portion of the lake. Although other area lakes, including Lake Flower, Long Lake and Raquette Lake, harbor the plant, Lake Placid had remained free of it until now.
“We were hoping there was something about Lake Placid that made it inhospitable (to milfoil),” Riggins said. “Wrong. It’s here.”
Volunteers trolled the bay near the village boat launch Friday, pulling up slimy, green clumps of the plant with a “water weasel” rake. Volunteers collected 15 samples of the plant, which has been tentatively identified as variable-leaf milfoil. The samples will be sent to a Wisconsin lab for further testing to confirm the type of strain.
Paddling a kayak, Tyler Smith, aquatics coordinator for the Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program, found the outer corners of the patch and entered his locations into a GPS unit. He said the largest bed has probably been there for three to five years.
“This has been here for a while,” Smith said. “It’s thriving.”
But Wilson said that at the time the last extensive survey of Paradox Bay was done — three years ago — there was no milfoil.
“So basically we have a three-year-old growing like a five-year-old,” he said. “The size of the large patch precludes any thought of hand harvesting. It’s just way too large.”
One option that has been successful in other areas is using a benthic mat, which is a large, opaque tarp that is placed on the bottom of a lake. It blocks out sunlight and smothers the plants. Wilson said he does not know how much eradicating the milfoil will cost.
The milfoil was almost certainly brought to Lake Placid through one of the two public boat launches on the southeastern shore of the lake. For the past several years, there has been a lake steward at the state Department of Environmental Conservation boat launch at the Lake Placid Marina to inspect boats for invasives, but the less-used Lake Placid village boat launch on Victor Herbert Road is not watched as carefully and does not have a facility for cleaning boats before they go into the lake. Earlier this month, the SOA received permission from the village Board of Trustees to place a water steward at the village boat launch. The group is still looking for the funds to do that.
For the past couple of years, Captain Marney’s, a Paradox Bay boat rental business, has used its boats on both Lake Flower and Lake Placid, but business partner Gary Bishop said there is no chance the milfoil could have been transported from Lake Flower on his boats.
“Every time I transport a boat, I take it to my house and pressure wash it with soap,” he said. “I always do that. I care about this lake. I’m really concerned about it.”
Bishop noted that the lake steward at the DEC boat launch is not there early in the morning or in the evening, so not all boats entering at that site are inspected.
But now is not the time to point fingers, Wilson said. Working quickly with village and town of North Elba officials will be essential to getting the milfoil outbreak under control.
“It’s going to be a collaboration of all three bodies and coordinating our efforts,” he said.
For now, the SOA is working on educating people about the problem. Wilson planned on posting flyers this morning on the docks and boathouses of Paradox Bay, asking boaters to avoid the large patch. Enforcing a five-miles-per-hour rule inside the bay will also be helpful to minimize the breaking apart of the plant. Wilson said the SOA board of trustees met on Saturday and decided a low-altitude fly-over of the lake might be necessary to see exactly where and how big the patches of milfoil are.
“The plants create a shadow on the bottom that is fairly telltale,” he said. “We will do that soon.”
Although the fact that the cold waters of Lake Placid are not very conducive to plant growth provides some encouragement that the problem can be nipped in the bud, Wilson said floating milfoil fragments have been found as far away from Paradox Bay as the eastern tip of Buck Island.
“That is frightening,” he said. “The clock is ticking on this.”
Wilson, a Saranac Lake resident who has spent part of nearly every summer of his life on Lake Placid, said his first reaction to the discovery of milfoil was not alarm but sorrow.
“I felt a real sadness,” he said. “I love this lake. ... Hopefully, we can act quickly to get this thing under control as quickly as possible.”
You must first login before you can comment.