January 5, 2020
This announcement was published prior to the merger of the LGA with The FUND for Lake George in June 2021.
The FUND for Lake George issued the following statements praising Governor Cuomo’s announcement that New York State will provide an additional $9.4 million to the Village of Lake George for replacement of its failing wastewater treatment plan, making possible the single most important Lake George protection project in generations.
Statement from Eric Siy, Executive Director of The FUND for Lake George:
Governor Cuomo’s announcement that New York State will provide an additional $9.4 million to the Village of Lake George for replacement of its failing wastewater treatment plant will make possible the single most important Lake George protection project in generations.
Left unabated, pollution from the treatment plant and aging private septic systems poses serious threats to Lake George as a drinking water source for residents and visitors, and greatly increases the risk of harmful algal blooms like those that have wreaked havoc on the environment and economy of lakes across our state and beyond. Our environment and economy are two sides of the same coin, and Lake George is the common currency that will either accrue or decline in value depending on the actions we now take. Governor Cuomo’s leadership and New York State’s direct investment will help ensure we protect the legendary clarity and cleanliness of Lake George and the health of our regional economy for generations to come.
The state’s investment is particularly gratifying to The FUND for Lake George, as it was the Lake George Waterkeeper, a program of The FUND, that conducted the landmark 17-month study that delivered definitive scientific evidence that the current Depression-era treatment plant is a major source of water quality impacts.The FUND also provided the Village with a $20,000 grant to start the design of a new plant and has been the leading third-party advocate for additional state assistance, with myself and Warren County EDC President Ed Bartholomew, a member of The FUND’s Council of Business Advisors, providing invited testimony together in 2019 at a joint legislative session about the critical importance of a new plant to the environment and economy of the region.
The FUND applauds Gov. Cuomo for his personal understanding of Lake George as a crown jewel requiring substantial State commitments to protect it from multiple threats, including wastewater and stormwater pollution that contribute to the potential for harmful algal blooms. We thank State Senator Betty Little and Assemblyman Dan Stec for their tireless advoacacy on behalf of our lake. We also thank and congratulate Mayor Bob Blais on what will be among the greatest achievements of his highly accomplished half-century of leadership — a new, state-of the-art treatment plant that will protect Lake George for the long-term.
Statement from Kathy Flacke Muncil, Chair of The FUND’s Council of Business Advisors:
Without question, this commitment of State resources is paramount to the future health of our regional economy, which is so very dependent on the health of Lake George. Governor Cuomo’s investment will help protect our lake from the harmful algal blooms that have decimated the environment and economy of lakeside communities across our country. The investment also reflects the Governor’s recognition that a village the size of Lake George — with fewer than 1,000 year-round residents — simply cannot afford on its own to build a treatment plant capable of servicing the hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the state and around the globe who flock to the Village each year. This is a banner day for everyone who cares about The Queen of American Lakes.
Related Programs
- Lake George Waterkeeper
- The Business of Lake Protection