There is one claim made pretty regularly regarding the use of herbicides on Chautauqua Lake — made by scientists, mind you — that we wish had actually decided either true or false by scientists rather than being bandied about as a working hypothesis as if it were fact.

We speak about the alleged link between the use of herbicides and algal blooms on the lake. John Kelly, a scientist with the Jefferson Project, said in response to a question from one of the elected officials at a recent meeting that he is concerned killing large portions of weeds may actually increase harmful algal blooms.

“Those weeds are taking nutrients out of the lake that are not getting to the cyanobacteria. I know it’s a tough choice, do you want weeds or do you want cyanobacteria. We don’t want either but they’re both eating the nutrients,” he said.

To be fair, Kelly was quick to point the finger at phosphorus levels in the lake as the major reason for algal blooms and he makes his point more eloquently than some who have pointed fingers at herbicide use as a reason for algal blooms. More importantly is the fact that Kelly’s concern isn’t a new point. The argument has been made by some Chautauqua Lake groups for years and showed up earlier late last year in a lawsuit seeking to stop the use of ProcellaCOR — which has been used on Chautauqua Lake over the past few years– on Lake George.

The problem is the concerns have yet to be settled conclusively by science.

There doesn’t appear to be a scientific research paper showing a definitive link between the use of herbicides and algal blooms, though herbicides based on glyphosate, the chemical used in RoundUp and some other weed-killing products, can contribute to phosphorus buildups. So it is important not to use the wrong herbicides. At the same time those who have been on Chautauqua Lake for a few years know algal blooms were happening on the lake before herbicide use was renewed. We also know phosphorus and other nutrients reaching the lake do contribute to algal blooms — and the biggest cause of phosphorus is internal loading, according to the 2012 Chautauqua Lake TMDL.

Scientists like Kelly hypothesize that removing too many weeds from a lake removes one way that a lake can naturally remove nutrients. That makes sense. One can make the case that keeping more vegetation in the lake is important to help prevent blooms — and that seems to be what the DEC is saying when it approves roughly one-third the herbicide acreage that is applied for each year. But it isn’t the same as proving conclusively that herbicides cause algal blooms. That’s important because it’s important for competing interests and views to be able to work cooperatively on Chautauqua Lake, and tossing around unproven claims only complicates working relationships between groups whose members have opposing viewpoints on issues like herbicides.

We don’t want to see the age-old herbicide debate derail what could be important breakthroughs in the understanding of algal blooms on Chautauqua Lake. We now know, thanks to the Jefferson Project, that algae has been discovered in the middle of the lake and likely can’t be skimmed off the top of the lake because the entire water column is engaged. Harry Kohlar, who is working with Kelly as part of the Jefferson Project’s efforts on Chautauqua Lake, said it may soon be possible to determine whether or not an algal bloom will be toxic or not, which is important information for boating and swimming on Chautauqua Lake, as well as possibly predict ahead of time if a toxic harmful algal bloom is going to occur. It’s hard to overstate the importance of such an early warning capability for a local economy that relies so much on summer tourism.

No one should want to see the science behind that exciting work jeopardized by claims that science doesn’t yet back regarding herbicides and algal blooms, because some of the Jefferson Project’s work is truly exciting and a possible game-changer for Chautauqua Lake.