Happy Spring!
Even with major snowfall in March, signs of spring are all over Roaring Brook Lake. From the small yellow buds of forsythia finally popping out along the road to the lake filling up nicely after the valve at the dam was closed. We hope you all are enjoying the warmer weather and getting out to take in the sights of nature waking up. See below for some other updates around town. And if you have any news or updates you’d like to see in our newsletter, please send a note to admin@rblpoa.com. Thanks!
Recap of the March District meeting at the Town Hall
AJ Reyes, our lake supervisor, was introduced by Supervisor Annabi and spoke to the community and answered questions for about 30 minutes.
The water quality was generally good in 2022. (Phosphorus levels and water clarity were stable at the upper end of mesotrophic. Algae concentration was somewhat lower than in previous years.)
He is completing the data evaluation from the 2022 season and will submit his report and make a formal presentation shortly.
More regular pumping of septic tanks, a relatively cool spring, and faster flushing of the lake (due to precipitation) may be some of the factors that resulted in relatively good water quality in 2022.
The plant study showed a general decrease in aquatic plants across the board, with specific decreases in invasive fanwort noted.
Plants in the 2022 season did not generally reach the surface of the lake and did not generally interfere with recreation.
Chinese Mystery snails (invasive) were noted by Reyes.
Plants are being adequately controlled by winter drawdown and surviving sterile grass carp. Residents should not be surprised, however, to see increases in nuisance aquatic vegetation as the sterile carp reach the end of their life expectancy.
Reyes reported that a pilot study is planned to use Eutrasorb bags to reduce phosphorus entering Roaring Brook Lake at the Roaring Brook inlet. The RB inlet has been shown to have intermittently high phosphorus concentrations. Reyes stated that the Eutrosorb active ingredient is Lanthanum, a naturally occurring element, which binds phosphorus. The Lanthanum will be retained in the bags, sequestering phosphorus as the water runs through them. Reyes stated that the bags have been found to be safe and are widely used in wastewater management. The pilot study for RBL has been permitted by the DEC.
Reyes stated that a permit has been submitted to the DEC for sand reclamation at Park Beach. The reclaimed sand will be relocated to the swim area. The permit may not be approved in time to do the work this spring, as originally planned. However, the permit will be good for at least three years and, if need be, the work can be done this fall. There was general agreement that filling the lake for the summer should take precedence over the project.
Supervisor Annabi then reported that the final version of the engineering project to rehabilitate the Roaring Brook Lake dam was submitted to the DEC in February of 2023.
Generally, dam safety projects take about a year from DEC submission to approval.
When DEC approval is granted, the next step will be for the Town to send the plans out for bid by contractors. Work on the dam is therefore not expected to take place until 2024 or later.
Annabi will post the full final engineering plan, as submitted to the DEC, on the Town website.
We are not yet removing abandoned boats from around the lake as the definition of an abandoned boat still needs clarification from the courts. Once it has been defined by the courts, the boat removal process can begin. The boats can be brought to the Highway Department and Shawn will either sell them or dispose of them. Any money made from the boats will be given to the district. Any boats on district property should have a current boat tag. Boat tags have a 3 year life span. Please make sure your boats are properly tagged so they do not get removed.
Finally, Annabi explained that the new Town mooring buoy regulations were passed because of problems that occurred at Lake Oscawana. Annabi stated that the regulations are a non-issue for RBL. She stated that DEC buoy permits are not required as long as the mooring buoy is within 100 feet of the property owner’s shoreline.
In search of a Lake Superintendent and lifeguards
We need a new Lake Superintendent – or two! Please ask around to see if anyone is interested. The residents at the town meeting were unanimous in approving a $2/hr pay raise for RBL lifeguards, to $16/hr for a Junior, $18/hr for a Senior. District funds will pay for the increase. Supervisor Annabi also agreed for the District to reimburse lifeguards who are RBL residents $125 per year for their certification course costs, as long as they comply with the attendance rules.
A new digital news site for Putnam Valley
Roaring Brook Lake resident Sarah Bartlett retired from the deanship of The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York in June 2022. She wrote to us a few months later remarking that she may be “struggling with the concept of retirement,” and felt compelled to start a new news website about Putnam Valley. Check it out here: Watching Putnam Valley.
Upcoming events:
April 12 | Putnam Valley Town Hall Working Session at 5pm
April 19 | Puntam Valley Town Hall Regular Session at 6pm
April 22 | Bulk Drop-off at Putnam Valley Town Hall from 8:45am - 11:45am
April 23 | Community Shred Event at Putnam Valley Town Hall from 10am - 2pm
All photos courtesy of Alex Harris.
