We hope you and your loved ones are managing during this difficult COVID19 time. It has been challenging in so many ways and we all look to the future to when we can return to more normal times and activities.
There are several items we would like to share with you regarding our lake. You have the opportunity to provide your input to the relevant organizations.
1. Bonnyman Road: Those of you who use Bonnyman Rd realize it is not in the best condition. This has been an ongoing issue for quite a long time in several regards concerning road condition, erosion, and related water quality issues. The PLA has worked with the Towns of Wakefield and Effingham and AWWA regarding shoreline erosion and remediation projects on Bonnyman Rd, yet there is more that could be done and we look to support that future effort. At this time and more specifically, you can provide direct input to the Town of Wakefield by completing a road complaint form. The website of the Wakefield Highway / Public Services is: https://www.wakefieldnh.com/highway We would encourage anyone who uses Bonnyman Rd, regardless of what town you reside in, to provide this input to the Town of Wakefield.
2. Wake Boats: It is the collective opinion of the PLA, that wake boats on our lake would cause both water quality and invasive issues to be exacerbated. Larger wakes in our shallow lake would increase erosion and release a significant amount of phosphorus from the sediment. This phosphorus would be suspended in the water column and drive further cyanobacteria blooms. There is also great concern regarding milfoil being introduced to the lake from the wake boat tanks (we are presently free of milfoil). Wake boats on Province Lake typically operate in other adjacent lakes, which all have invasive milfoil problems. In our opinion, the potential for introducing milfoil into Province waters is unacceptably high. With an average depth of 10 feet, the lake would be colonized by milfoil, rendering the lake unusable for all recreational activities.
That being said, the following from NH Lakes provides you with the opportunity to provide input on wake boats.
‘Wake boats (those that use ballast water to lower the transom and increase the wake height for wake surfing) have been the subject of a legislative study commission. NH LAKES has been serving on this study commission created by House Bill 137 a year ago. Although the study commission has stopped meeting, we expect it will still issue a report by June 30, 2020. During the past few weeks, individuals have been writing or emailing the commission chair, expressing support or concern about the use or impact of wake boats on New Hampshire’s waterbodies.
Whether you enjoy wake boating or have concerns about impacts from wake boats on your favorite lake, the wake boat study commission needs to hear from you! Please email and share your personal testimony with the wake boat study commission chair, Representative Suzanne Smith at Suzanne.Smith@leg.state.nh.us. Provide factual information about how these watercraft have been for your enjoyment, or if you have observed these watercraft to have caused problems. Please reach out now. It is essential for the wake boat commission to hear from our membership community.’
3. As we are all anticipating the arrival of better weather and enjoying our lake in all it has to offer, please follow guidelines for managing your properties in ways that do not encourage erosion and degradation of water quality (see our spring newsletter for details). Spring clean up and litter collection is always encouraged, in a socially distance manner of course.
Many thanks for your support of Province Lake. Be healthy and stay well.
Lorie for the PLA