March 27, 2023
The (Schenectady) Daily Gazette is calling for New York State to consider the many scientific concerns raised by the Lake George Association (LGA), Lake George Waterkeeper, local municipalities, and worried citizens, and withdraw its application to use a chemical herbicide in the Lake for the first time ever.
“There is just too much that’s not known about the impact of the chemical and how it behaves in the conditions unique to Lake George to take the risk that it could upset the delicate balance of the lake ecosystem,” the Gazette wrote in its March 26 editorial. “ . . . One wrong decision and the consequences could be disastrous — to plants, to fish, to wildlife, to the overall health of the lake and surrounding area, to recreational users of the lake and to the regional economy.”
“The (Lake George) Park Commission needs to withdraw its permit application,” the Gazette added. “It needs to work with the Lake George Association, Lake George Waterkeeper and other groups to evaluate the chemical’s potential for positive and negative effects on the lake. And it needs to weigh the concerns raised by property owners, public officials, anglers and others. Until it has all that information, it should not be seeking permission to apply this chemical in the lake.”
The LGA, Waterkeeper, the towns of Hague, Dresden and Ticonderoga, and nearly 4,600 concerned citizens have called on Gov. Kathy Hochul, the Adirondack Park Agency (APA), and the Lake George Park Commission to pause the state’s pursuit of permit applications to use the herbicide ProcellaCOR as a new treatment for Eurasian watermilfoil until the many unanswered scientific questions about the impacts to the Lake’s water quality, native plants, and organisms can be answered.
Join us in asking Gov. Hochul, the APA, and the Park Commission to keep ProcellaCOR out of our Lake!