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Wendel Notes Fewer Weeds In Lake

By Gregory Bacon 4 min read

MAYVILLE -- County Executive PJ Wendel said he is pleased at how well Chautauqua Lake is doing with fewer weeds.

Wendel visited the Mayville Village Board and gave an update on the lake's health and what the county is doing in regard to weeds and harmful algal blooms.

"Last year the ducks were walking on the water with the amount of weeds," he said at the meeting. This year there is a pump that moves the water, which helps get the weeds available to be picked up by the harvester.

Wendel in particular praised Chautauqua Town Supervisor Don Emhart and the rest of the town board.

"They are a key cog to our lake maintenance program and Don has been an incredible part of this. I can't say enough about him," he said. Wendel said they are seeking federal funds for dredging. "Dredging is that one mystical piece that we haven't put a lot of effort into that because of the price tag," he said.

Ten years ago, it was estimated that it would cost $13 million to dredge the lake. Historically when there hasn't been a deep freeze over the winter the weeds have been a bigger problem the following summer.

That was the case this winter. Also, this year less herbicide was used in the lake, due to a decision by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Even though there wasn't a deep freeze and less herbicide was used, there hasn't been a massive amount of weeds in the lake.

"The Farmer's Almanac would say 'no ice, a lot of weeds.' We had very little ice but our weeds, especially here in the north basin, have been diminished and the same in the south basin," Wendel said. No one quite knows the reason why, but they would like to. "That's why this science is so important. The Jefferson Project is looking at a multitude of things," Wendel said.

The Jefferson Project at Lake George, a state-of-the-art program for water quality and Harmful Algal Bloom research, was introduced to Chautauqua Lake in 2020 in partnership with the Chautauqua County, Chautauqua Institution, and the Chautauqua Lake and Watershed Management Alliance.

The Jefferson Project is a collaboration of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, IBM Research, and the Lake George Association, which employs a sophisticated technological approach to studying fresh water, with a goal of understanding the impact of human activity on fresh water, and how to mitigate those effects.

Wendel noted that it's impossible to eliminate the weeds in Chautauqua Lake, but they are trying hard to eliminate the invasive weeds, which sometimes get in the lake from boats that accidentally bring them in from other lakes.

He thanked Mayville and other municipalities for their unanimous decision to again sign the Memorandum of Understanding. The MOU, which was first adopted in 2021, has no legal authority. Instead it's been called a "statement of the intent of all participants to work collaboratively and in good faith to achieve the common goal of an ecologically and economically healthy Chautauqua Lake." The MOU is designed to be a tool when the county applies for grants.

Mayville hesitated two years ago on signing the MOU because it was in the process of suing the county after perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) was found in its drinking water. It is believed the PFNA got in the village's water wells when the county held firefighting trainings using foam at the Chautauqua Municipal Building grounds.

Mayville eventually filed a lawsuit against the county, however it decided to drop it earlier this year. Part of the reason for the lawsuit was Mayville was required to pay $500,000 in order to receive a $2 million federal grant for its water project, however the $500,000 match requirement has been waived by the federal government.

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