By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org

HOLDERNESS – As lake and watershed associations gather this summer to discuss collective concerns, many are hearing about a free consultation program called LakeSmart which helps shorefront owners assess ways they can help prevent cyanobacteria and other harms that come from runoff.

While the state Department of Environmental Services reports that most lakes and beaches in New Hampshire are safe to enjoy this weekend, two state parks and several other locations have bacteria advisories, alerts, and warnings. See DES map here: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/8d84a6b03acb4efaab571b222c78447b

On Friday, they included Pawtuckaway State Park Beach with a fecal bacteria advisory.

Cyanobacteria watches were issued for Pawtuckaway Lake in Nottingham, Jenness Pond in Northwood, Lees Pond in Moultonborough and Cobbetts Pond in Windham. Cyanobacteria warnings were issued for Silver Lake in Hollis, Sunset Lake in Alton, and Hopkinton Dike Elm Brook in Hopkinton.

Cyanobacteria also known as blue-green algae are naturally occurring but when created due to excess nutrients in the water can emit toxins.

Exposure to the blooms can kill pets and livestock and make people sick. Symptoms can begin with skin irritation, mucous membrane irritation, tingling, numbness, nausea, vomiting, seizures, and diarrhea. State officials request people who become sick from cyanobacteria to report it to the state after seeking medical attention.

Elijah Stommel, MD, PhD, a professor of neurology at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and a neurologist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, has been studying the problem of cyanobacteria in New Hampshire’s lakes and the possible links to ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, a progressive and lethal neurodegenerative disorder affecting nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. 

A focus on Stommel’s study of higher than normal cluster of incidence of ALS in residents on Lake Mascoma in Enfield were included in a documentary, “The Toxic Puzzle” narrated by Harrison Ford https://www.toxicpuzzle.com/

See InDepthNH.org’s story here: https://indepthnh.org/2024/07/02/cyanobacteria-in-nh-lakes-an-increasing-problem-that-may-be-linked-to-als/

Nancy Isikoff of Holderness spoke before a neighborhood gathering of about 40 Thursday to discuss the progress being made by the Squam Lakes Conservation Society https://www.squamslandtrust.org/ in protecting the watershed. 

When the discussion turned to the increasing prevalence of toxic cyanobacteria in state waters, she urged her neighbors to reach out for a LakeSmart assessment which can be accomplished in about 15 minutes online and can be followed up with a free property visit.

The program, offered through the New Hampshire Lakes Association which includes a quick survey, can also lead to a half hour visit to the property to discuss ways to live in a more lake-friendly way.

A link to the free program is here https://nhlakes.org/the-nh-lakes-lakesmart-program-helps-fight-against-cyanobacteria-blooms/#:~:text=LakeSmart%20is%20a%20free%2C%20non-regulatory%2C%20and%20voluntary%20education,their%20property%20feeding%20cyanobacteria%20blooms%20in%20nearby%20lakes.

Isikoff said she is concerned about White Oak Pond and Big Squam Lake and how climate change and human actions are impacting the local watershed.

Andrea LaMoreaux, president and policy advocate for NH LAKES, said the recent rash of cyanobacteria warnings and advisories on Lake Winnipesaukee, which are no longer in effect, while unfortunate, has created a “wake up call” opportunity to discuss lake health and an increase in requests for LakeSmart assessments.

“It’s upsetting,” she said noting the same night as Isikoff spoke she was at a similar meeting in Meredith where a couple told her the cyanobacteria warnings for the big lake were their “Aha moment” and left the meeting with 30 booklets about the LakeSmart program to spread to their neighbors.

The LakeSmart program, which had a soft launch in 2019 has grown each year, LaMoreaux said, with more lake associations wanting to partner to help. 

Currently the Newfound Lake Association, Lake Winnipesaukee Association and the Squam Lakes Association are community partners for the assessment program which is paid for by contributions of lake associations to NHLA.

“We are reaching hundreds of people but we really need to be reaching thousands,” she said Friday.

She said the LakeSmart Lake-Friendly Living Program offers “free and voluntary education, evaluation, and recognition” and have “helped property owners throughout the state adopt simple actions to reduce the amount of nutrient pollution their properties are contributing to our waterways and fueling plant, algal, and cyanobacteria growth in our waters.”

Some of the simple recommendations which often come from the assessment are doing things like adding native plants like blueberry bushes to create a more dense and thick buffer between the property where runoff enters the lake; looking at product use with a special emphasis on no-phosphate detergents; and reading labels about fertilizers which can have a negative impact. 

Often the assessment includes a discussion about the septic system on the property and the importance of developing a relationship with a septic service to build a plan for current and future needs, as she said few properties are actually changing hands now, when typically septic upgrades are predicated on the contractual sale.

“It’s really a journey for some folks to become lake friendly. They come from different parts of the country,” and don’t understand the link between product use on and in their property and the impacts which can not only mean more blooms of cyanobacteria from nutrient overload but some studies, she said have shown a reduction in property values up to 22 percent due to degradation of water quality.

After the media reports of cyanobacteria in Lake Winnipesaukee, the state’s largest lake, she said she was hearing about people concerned with keeping rental agreements this summer.

It can have a very negative impact on tourism as well as health and safety, she noted.

One major problem for the group is a lack of funding with the state’s $1 million cyanobacteria mitigation program which is nearly all spent. 

The original legislative bill sought $25 million for the program which was pared down two years ago to $1 million.

She said the state has a new cyanobacteria plan with recommendations to increase the LakeSmart program but there is no current funding.

With a new legislature next year, that could change with potential legislation including the idea of creating a septic replacement fund for those struggling financially but who have lakefront property in some cases, handed down to them through the generations.

There were some “wins” for the lakes during this past legislative session, LaMoreaux said, to help the state be more lake friendly with the state having about 1,000 water bodies.

Gov. Chris Sununu signed into law House Bill 1113 which goes into effect in September, requiring all lakefront property within 250 feet of shore that sell, replace failing septic systems within a year.

“It’s good but it is a very small step,” she said, because a fraction of the property is actually changing hands now through contractual sales.

She also noted House Bill 1293 which is expected but has not yet been signed by the outgoing Republican governor, helps with informing consumers about products on hardware store shelves in the area containing phosphates and their impacts to the shoreline, but it is only advisory.

She said both bills had very little opposition and she is hopeful that a caucus among interest groups including tourism organizations, realtors and lake and watershed associations can come together this winter to see more collaborative legislation pass.

In the meantime, she and her team are going to annual lake meetings across the state to give presentations on “the simple things everyone can do to help pull the lakes they love and the lakes in their community back from the tipping point.”

“Our overall messaging is that there are things that are difficult for us as individuals to control (increasing temperatures, flooding, lack of ice cover, etc.) which are contributing to cyanobacteria blooms, but there are things we CAN control (reducing nutrient pollution) to make our lakes more resilient to our changing climate and that will minimize the occurrence and severity of cyanobacteria blooms.”

According to NH DES website:

“A cyanobacteria Warning (Advisory) is issued lake-wide when cyanobacteria cell concentrations exceed 70,000 cells/mL (Administrative Rule Env-Wq 1108.14). Warnings are not based on toxin evaluation but occur at cyanobacteria cell count densities when toxin production may be likely. These are intended as a precautionary measure for short-term exposure to cyanotoxins. When a Warning is issued, resampling is performed weekly until the bloom subsides. Warnings are issued from May 15 through October 15.

“An Alert may also be issued for a waterbody to serve as a statement to be on the watch for a potential cyanobacteria bloom. Sometimes Alerts become Warnings, and sometimes the bloom will pass before an Warning is issued. Alerts remain active for a week.”