The Province Lake Watershed Management Plan is underway!  Over the past several months, dedicated PLA members, property owners, state and local officials, and interested parties have joined forces and started the process of analyzing the Province Lake Watershed.

On May 6th, the PLA made this press release.

On May 18th, a watershed survey was conducted with great success!  The PLA partnered with volunteers, Maine DEP, NH DES, and AWWA to identify sites along the shoreline that may have erosion issues or be contributing sediment and nutrients to the lake.

Currently, the PLA is preparing to mail information to the owners of sites that were identified.  These property owners can contact the AWWA Program Manager to receive a free technical assistance visit to see if they do have a problem and how they may be able to fix the problem.

Stay tuned for updates on the Watershed Management Plan as the summer moves forward!

Sunset on Province Lake

On May 18th, the Province Lake Association (PLA), Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance (AWWA), NH DES, ME DEP, and lots of volunteers took on the task of surveying the Province Lake watershed to identify areas that could have negative impacts on the water quality of Province Lake.

Part of the team getting ready to hit the ground … other ambitious team members were
already out on the task at hand.

The group met at 9 AM on Saturday morning at the Province Lake Golf Course to undergo a training and information session before hitting the ground in search of erosion issues.  Everyone involved was eager and ready at the start of the day and finished with the same jovial, high spirits.

The Survey
The Province Lake Watershed Survey consisted of seven groups of 2-3 people that were assigned to specific sectors around the lake.  The focus was on the immediate 250 foot shoreline and river crossings along roads.  The groups walked their sectors in search of properties with sediment being exported to the lake from driveways, unstable shorelines, roads, and many other features that could potentially harm the water quality of the lake.

Runoff from Bonnyman Road making its way to Province Lake, carrying sediment, nutrients, as well as potentially carrying oil and gas.

Runoff and beach erosion off Route 153.

After walking the watershed for 3-4 hours, the groups returned to the golf course to upload photos, grab a snack, and chat about what they had seen.  Each site that was documented had recommendations for fixes, including, but not limited to waterbars, erosion control mulch, or infiltration steps.

The data collected from this survey will be put into a report and property owners who have a potential erosion issue will be contacted by the Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance for a free technical assistance visit to see if there is anything they can do to help the property and the lake.

The PLA, AWWA, NH DES, and ME DEP would like to extend a great big THANK YOU to all the volunteers who gave their time on a Saturday to perform this task and begin the process in protecting Province Lake.  We would also like to thank the Province Lake Golf Course for their kind offering of their facilities for our meeting/training.  Finally, and most importantly, we would like to thank all of you property owners for allowing us to walk your property as we continue to try to maintain and improve the quality of Province Lake.

The Province Lake Association, NH Department of Environmental Services, Maine Department of Environmental Protection, Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance, property owners, and volunteers will be performing a watershed survey on May 18.  The survey is intended to identify potential locations of stormwater pollution and/or erosion that could be harming Province Lake.

Volunteers and Technical Leaders will meet at 9 AM at the Province Lake Golf Course for a training period before hitting the field.  If you are interested in volunteering in the survey, please contact PLAwatershed@ProvinceLake.org

Land Owner Letter