Province Lake Association Newsletter
Fall 2009
Jack and Barbara Wilkins
To all PLA members:
This Newsletter
is being emailed to all that requested it that way. This
really helps out the association by reducing postage costs and us by
eliminating
the stuffing of many envelopes. So thanks to all that requested it. You
also
receive it about a week before the snail mail version. (In last years’
case
about 2 months before.)
Hello
PLA Members,
Another summer at
our lake is
over and the cold weather is close at hand.
It seems like this summer was shorter than normal with all the
rainy
weekends.
Boat Parade
The annual boat
parade was
held on July 5th this year. This year we had fair weather
but a
pretty poor turnout as only 4 boats participated – The McKelvies of
Effingham
won first prize. If you would like this event to continue we need a
couple
volunteers to step forward and take charge. You basically set the date
(Sunday
nearest July 4th), print up some posters and post them at
various
local places, appoint some judges, lead the parade around the lake then
pass
out the prizes.
Annual Meeting 2009
Welcome: Mary
McLoughlin, President, called the
meeting to order at 9:34 AM and welcomed everyone to the 37th
annual
meeting of the PLA. She thanked the Porters for the use of the room and
for the
coffee and refreshments they provided.
The Porters told us how glad they were to host the meeting and
outlined
the restaurant schedule.
Speaker:
Adam
Shoukimas, Technical Director of the Acton/Wakefield Watershed
Alliance, gave a
presentation describing various means of preventing erosion into
waterways as a
means of improving lake and stream water quality. He
also told us of the organization’s youth
group which can help with design and installation of erosion prevention
systems.
He also outlined the new firewood movement
restrictions now in place to protect
The Acton/Wakefield Watershed Alliance
website address is: www.awwatersheds.org.
At the conclusion of Adam’s presentation,
Stan Maluchnik described an erosion problem on
Secretary’s
Report: Marion Chouinard
moved to accept the 2008 meeting minutes as published
in the Fall 2008 newsletter. The motion was seconded and passed
unanimously.
Treasurer’s
Report: Marion Chouinard
reported that we have $6537.77 in the checking
account, and two CD’s, for a total of $27,730.96. She
also reported that we have received $355
in weed control donations this year.
Audit
Report: Dennis
Derby reported that he had audited the
books recently and found them to be in good order.
Loon
Report: Tori
Ketner reported that we have one pair of
loons and one single loon on our lake this year. There
have been no signs of eggs or babies on
the raft.
Weed
Report: Steve
Craig reported that no invasive weeds
have been found to date, but emphasized that we must keep looking for
them.
Membership
Report: Carl
Davis reported that we
have 85 members at this point, and our membership has historically
fluctuated
between 80 and 90 members. He and Jon
Samuelson have researched town records and found that there are about
500
potential members, counting
Boat
Parade: Four
boats
participated; the McKelvies won.
The Cartwrights have decided this year is the last for them to
organize
the parade, so anyone interested in organizing future boat parades
should
contact our president, Mary McLoughlin.
Water
Quality Report:
Norm Dudziak
reported that 2008 was the 18th year of water testing, and
the water
quality was very good, similar to that in 2007.
His full report can be found on the website.
Water
Control and
Newsletter
and Website:
Jack Wilkins
reminded members to send in any interesting
happenings or
photos around
the lake.
Raffles: Several groups
of photos, notecards, Cabin
Life magazine subscriptions, and one icebox were raffled off.
The meeting was
adjourned at
10:47 AM.
Respectfully
submitted,
President’s Message
Once again I
am back home in
During the
summer Carl Davis was busy sending out letters to lake owners telling
them
about our organization and welcoming them to join us.
In September, Carl and I met the Towle Farm
community and told them of our primary goal of maintaining good water
quality
and being vigilant about washing our boats before we put them in the
lake to
prevent the dreaded milfoil. Several of
their members took applications. We hope
that they will join our family.
We observed
Adam Shoukimas from the Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance rally his
troops to
work on erosion control on Bonnyman
road. This alliance offers free
technical assistance and designs for simple, low cost erosion control
measures. If you would like to explore
this
We have so
many members who put in many hours to make sure our lake is clean and
loon
friendly. I would like to thank several of them. Mary and Steve Craig
have once
again done an excellent job doing the water testing and transporting
the tests
to
Next year we
will be having elections for the board.
If you are interested in serving our association or would like
to
nominate someone, please let me know. I
can be reached by email at President@ProvinceLake.org.
I hope you
all have a healthy and happy holiday season and look forward to seeing
you all
next summer!
Mary
McLoughlin
Dam Report
From the
Dam Master at
Another
good year at
The logs
at the dam went in on 5/17/2009 at a lake
water level of 480 ft. above sea level, which is the ideal level
according to
the State. This equilibrates to a 6-7” mark below the top of concrete
abutment
at the dam.
During the
summer the logs were separated on two
occasions to allow faster drainage of the lake water after some heavy
rains.
For the past three years we have had significant summer rains which
have kept
the water level on the high side.
Also
during these three years we have had no algae
blooms or evidence of cyan bacteria, zebra mussels or milfoil. Marine
plant
growth has also been inhibited, particularly in the Hobbs Brook area. I
suspect
that the higher water levels have a part to play in this,
The logs
were removed on 10/2/2009 at a water level of
9” below the concrete abutment. Obstruction at the Bailey road culverts
is
being cleared by the town of
Respectfully
submitted,
Water Quality Report
Water Quality Monitoring of
2008
was the eighteenth consecutive year of water quality monitoring
conducted at Province
Lake. We sampled four times last
season. The test results for 2008 on water
samples
collected by Steve & Mary Craig were reviewed by the New Hampshire Department of
Environmental Services
(NHDES). State reports for a number
of years are available by clicking this
web site.
Many of the
terms below include hyperlinks to
interesting related web sites. By
clicking on most of the underlined terms, you can access additional
information. If the same word is hyperlinked more than once, the
different
occurrences lead to different web sites.
The NHDES report on the quality of water in the lake for 2008
indicates
the following:
1. The
average amount of algae
in the lake in 2008 was
virtually identical to that measured in the previous year, which itself
was the
lowest seen since 1999, as indicated by the chlorophyll-a
concentration. We have never returned to
the high levels observed during the weed removal activities of 1996 and
1997,
and their lingering effects in 1998. The
amount of algae is only 77% of the average for New
Hampshire lakes. This low level is
good because dying algae forms the brown floating bottom masses that
come to
your shore when the wind blows hard in July and August.
The algae masses settle loosely on the bottom
when the lake is still and cloud the water when wind
or boat wakes stir
things up.
2. Water
transparency (a
measure of
how deep you can see into the water) was an average of
The deepest
part of the lake is only 16—17 feet
deep, as shown on the bathymetric
chart.
3.
Phosphorus
is a nutrient required for plant
and algae growth and is typically the nutrient whose availability
most
limits plant and algae growth in NH lakes.
The average phosphorus levels in the upper water layer in 2008
were also
virtually identical to those measured in the previous year and were
only
slightly higher than in 50% of the lakes
in NH
(the median). In the lower water layer,
the phosphorus levels were less than in the previous 3 years and were
approximately equal to the NH median, but significantly below the
median for
lakes in NH that are similar to
The phosphorus concentrations at the Rt. 153
Inlet
and the Island
Inlet on
4.
We have never sampled
5.
Cyanobacteria
(also known as blue-green
algae) have occasionally been detected among plankton
samples in
If you think you are seeing
a bloom, stay out of the water and call the NHDES
Cyanobacteria Hotline at (603) 419-9229 to describe what you
see. If suspicious, NHDES will sample
and analyze the suspected bloom, then post a No Swimming advisory if
there is
any danger. They will monitor the
situation and remove the postings when all is clear.
The best ways to avoid having cyanobacteria blooms are by eliminating
fertilizer use on lawns, keeping
the lake shore natural, protecting
against shoreline erosion, and properly maintaining septic
systems.
6.
A pH
between 6.0 to 7.0 is ideal for fish. Ours in 2008 was an average of 6.5, almost
the same as the 6.6 average for the state.
The pH
at the Rt. 153 inlet was 5.7, more acidic than its long-term average of
6.0. Since it drains a large wetland,
it has a high concentration of tannic, humic, and fulvic
acids, which give it the color of tea and reduce its pH.
No problem is indicated.
7. The
dissolved
oxygen concentration measured in June 2008 showed 95 to 100% saturation
at all
depths sampled in the deep part of the lake.
A high oxygen level is a sign of the lake’s overall good health. I encourage powered watercraft to operate far
from the shore to mix the deep waters and boost the oxygen
concentration, while
minimizing their operation in the shallows.
Loons and
Lead:
A recently released study[i]
(in Northeastern
Naturalist, June 2009) addressed the ingestion of lead objects by
loons in
the six
Asian
Longhorned Beetle: The Asian Longhorned Beetle
(ALB) is a tree-killing beetle 0.75 -
1.
Please always
use local firewood, to keep from
spreading this beetle and other wood pests around.
There is a up to a $25,000 fine for
businesses knowingly removing wood from the Worcester quarantine area,
with
smaller fines for individuals moving wood for their personal use.
2.
Watch for the
beetle (July – October, most active in August), and more
importantly, for signs of it.
·
3/8 to 1/2
inch diameter round exit holes, which may
ooze sap
·
Sawdust
in tree crotches
·
Tree
leaves with only the midribs eaten out
·
Trees
dying from the top down (since the beetles and their larvae start
eating at the top)
·
Firewood
with 3/8 to 1/2 inch diameter round tunnels through it, eaten
out by the larvae
What To Do:
·
If you
suspect you see an Asian Longhorned Beetle,
try to capture it. Place it in a jar and
freeze it to kill it. It cannot bite
you.
·
Write
down the exact location where you found it, and at what date and
time.
·
If
you suspect you see tree damage from this beetle (but no beetle),
write down the location of the tree and the nature of the damage. Tie survey tape or string on the tree, if you
can.
·
Call 866-702-9938
from anywhere in the northeast
·
NOTE
that all Asian Longhorned Beetle infestations in the
·
You
can learn much more at the following web sites:
http://www.massnrc.org/pests/alb/
http://www.uvm.edu/albeetle/
http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/
THANK YOU
NOTE: I want to thank Steve Craig for taking the
lead on the sampling activity since 2004.
Each year the State report grades each sampling program and each
Respectfully
submitted,
Norm Dudziak,
P.E., I.M.
Independent subconsultant
to full-service environmental consulting
and engineering firm ESS Group, Inc.
The views
contained in
this report are my personal views and do not represent the views of ESS Group,
Inc.
Province Lake
Statistics
from Appendix
F of the State Report,
Which has Statistics for
|
Maximum
depth |
|
|
|
|
Average
depth |
|
|
|
|
Volume |
|
2.98
billion gallons |
|
|
|
|
|
1.58 square
miles |
|
Watershed
area[ii] |
|
|
7.30 square
miles |
|
Flush rate |
1.0 time
per year (annual outflow = lake volume) |
||
[i]
Pokras, Mark; Kneeland, Michelle; Ludi, Anna; Golden, Ethan; Major,
Andrew;
Miconi, Rose; and Poppenga, Robert H. “Lead
Objects Ingested by Common Loons in
[ii]
Watershed area includes the lake surface area.
Miscellany
Ways to contact us:
Question pertaining
to weeds
in the lake email: Weeds@ProvinceLake.org
General questions
about the
PLA email: President@ProvinceLake.org
If you want to
submit any
pictures or have questions about the website or change your email or
regular
mail address during the year email your changes to: info@provincelake.org
Ads for sale,
wanted, lost
and found, etc email: Adboard@ProvinceLake.org
