'One of the LARGEST Fireworks Displays in North America'
August 31st 2008
See the PDF poster for more Information
http://newsletter.chautauqualake.org/uploads/ChautLightPoster.pdf
'Join Us for a FREE symposium'
Chautauqua Lake Aquatic Plant Workshop
Conducted by Aquatic Scientist Robert Johnson
Cornell University Research Ponds
http://newsletter.chautauqualake.org/uploads/Symposium%20FlyerFinal.pdf
All We Had to Do Was Act Naturally!
The CLA’s “green efforts” have paid off! Find out how
insects made Burtis Bay the cleanest its been in a
decade! Plus, experience a “hands-on” approach to
examining plant and insect life residing in
Chautauqua Lake.
'Two Convenient Workshops Available!'
For More Information Call (716) 763-8602
Monday, August 18 7p.m.
Chautauqua Suites Route 394 Mayville
Tuesday, August 19 7p.m.
The Casino, Bemus Point
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 2, 2008
Contact: Anita Brown PH: 716.679.8005
Word Document News Release
“Working Together” is the Goal of the Chautauqua Lake Association Annual Meeting Highlights Collaboration of All Lake Organizations
Lakewood, N.Y
Chautauqua Lake Association President, Edward (Tad) Wright, told more than 135 members that collaboration among all lake
organizations must be the wave of the future at the 2008 annual meeting on Tuesday, June 30 at the Lakewood Rod and Gun Club.
“We need to continue to work with all of those who think our lake is an important asset to our community and economy.” Wright
said. “Organizations like the Chautauqua Lake Management Commission will help strengthen our efforts to maintain support for the
preservation of a primary resource for tourism and quality of life in Chautauqua County. We need the collaboration and cooperation of
all of the lake organizations, the community and the government to meet the goals set forth to make our lake one of the best in
New York State.”
CLA members, directors, volunteers and political dignitaries met to review what the organization accomplished in the past year and to
hear about its future goals. Congressman Brian Higgins (D-NY 27th) was in attendance and spoke to the group. “We need to create a human
infrastructure to preserve the extraordinary resource we have in the lake,” Higgins said. “There is always strength in numbers when facing
any public policy issue.”
The Congressman elaborated on the value of community while focusing on the life of NBC’s political analyst Tim Russert who recently
passed away. “Tim’s love for his family and his community showed us all what a blue-collar boy from Buffalo can do to make a positive change
in the world.”
Higgins told of local resident and CLA member, Rudy Mueller, who has been a “primary influence” in prompting early legislation to ban
phosphates from detergents. “We need to learn from Rudy’s example and prove that solutions to big government problems do not always come
from the top but start with the people who share a common agenda towards making real progress.”
Representatives from the offices of Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), State Senator, Catherine Young (R-Olean) and William Parment
(D-North Harmony) were also present.
Robert L. Johnson, manager of Cornell University's Research Pond Facility, spoke about the “drastic changes and delays in plant growth”
the lake has been experiencing this season. “We continue to monitor both native and non-native species of vegetation in the lake through
continuous scientific studies,” he said. “By maintaining these studies we will be able to better predict future outcomes of vegetation and
their cycles of growth.”
Art Webster of the Watershed Conservancy supported the CLA’s position on collaboration to meet common goals. “We need to cooperate and
magnify each others works. The key is to work together,” he said.
Keynote speaker, Craig Robbins, promotion director for the Chautauqua County Sports. Fishing and Hunting Authority gave a presentation on
“Past, Present and Future Fishing on Chautauqua Lake.” He said that the lake is much like a “successful business with peaks and valleys.”
He also cited the fact that Chautauqua Lake is one of the top five fisheries in New York State for an inland body of water. “This fact is
a tremendous boon to our community and our economy,” he said. “Just one tournament on the lake with about 40 to 50 anglers who stay an average
of two days and spend approximately $120 a day has a $24,000 direct economic impact on our community.” He fielded a variety of questions
from the audience about the types of fish in the lake and why some of them have multiplied while others have slightly diminished. He concluded,
“Overall fishing has never been better in Chautauqua Lake.”
President Tad Wright said the CLA now has more than 1,600 members and friends. He shared the fact the CLA is thriving only through “the generous
contributions of the community, private foundations and county government.” He added, “The financial support we received in 2007 has
allowed us to run a second shift, buy new equipment and extend the life of the existing fleet. Paul Swanson, CLA general manager, has worked
diligently to keep things running on a very efficient basis.”
The Chautauqua Lake Association is a non-profit organization that promotes and facilitates the study of Chautauqua Lake, participates
in and cooperates with local and state agencies and educates the community about the lake’s ecosystem and environmental lake management
practices.
Website Update: September 15, 2007
You can now download the Donation Form from the Website
Check out The Donation Page for more info
Special Online Release: September 14, 2007
Original Release: July 2, 2007
From the Office of New York’s Senator
CHARLES E. SCHUMER
313 Hart Senate Office Building~Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-7433 Fax: (202) 228-1218
Website schumer.senate.gov
WITH INVASIVE WEED SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE IN
CHAUTAUQUA LAKE, SCHUMER TOURS LAKE TO UNVEIL PLAN
TO CRUSH EURASIAN MILFOIL INFESTATION
Despite Efforts to Curtail their Spread, Resilient Weeds Continue to Spread,
Jeopardizing Recreational Boating, Tourism and Property Values
Senator Tours Lake in Weed-cutting Boat and Announce Newly-Secured Money to
Fund Latest Fight Against Invasive Plant
Schumer, Seeking Permanent Solution, Ratchets-up Eradication Efforts by Urging
New Army Corp Watershed Study & Announcing Federal Legislative Front in the
War on Invasive Weed
On the heels of securing money to thwart the invasive weed Eurasian Milfoil that is rapidly spreading
throughout Chautauqua Lake, today U. S. Senator Charles E. Schumer visited the lake for a firsthand
look at the damage and to announce a new full-out assault to permanently eliminate the destructive weed.
The unabated spread of the noxious weed, particularly in the Goose Creek section of the lake, is
wreaking havoc for local boaters, residents and tourist while jeopardizing property values in the area.
Schumer today unveiled a comprehensive plan for a long-term, permanent solution that will protect the
lake’s future.
Today, Schumer called on the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) to implement a comprehensive watershed
study to provide solutions to permanently uproot the weed. He also announced new legislation that will
prevent the introduction of invasive species into lakes and other bodies of water, undertake early detection
and rapid response to threats of invasive species, conduct outreach to local communities that are effected
by invasive species, and perform research on the various types of invasive species and the most effective
methods to prevent their spread and to eradicate them.
“While we’ve taken steps to try and minimize the reach of these weeds, it is time we look seriously at a
long-term solution to terminate this invasive species once and for all,” said Senator Schumer. “Unless we
examine the best way to permanently eradicate this devastating weed from Chautauqua Lake, it will
continue to pose a threat to local boaters, tourism and the value of property surrounding the lake.
“Chautauqua Lake is the gem of Chautauqua and we need to be doing everything we can to keep it clean,
safe, and beautiful.”
The rise of the Milfoil, which has spread exponentially in the Southern Basin of the lake, has led to
concerns over human and aquatic health, noxious odors, unsightly tangles of weeds on the shore, and
clogged, un-navigable waterways for recreational boaters. This invasive species of plant has placed an
enormous hardship on local governments and homeowners who are concerned their property values will
plummet due to the Milfoil’s unsightly appearance and foul odor.
The weeds have been particularly problematic in the Goose Creek section of the Lake. Goose Creek is the
largest tributary into Chautauqua Lake’s South Basin, where the Eurasian milfoil problem is most
prevalent. Massive erosion from Goose Creek’s 27.5 miles of banks is causing silt to be carried
downstream and redeposited, feeding the Milfoil problem, reducing water depths, and causing property
loss and damage. Without an erosion mitigation program in place, the weeds are spreading as depths in
the lake and creeks become shallower and more sunlight permeates beneath the surface.
Today, Senator Schumer announced he is calling on the Army Corps to conduct a watershed study that
will examine the long-term problem posed by the weeds and will offer solutions to permanently eliminate
it.
He also announced legislation that will authorize the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force (ANS) to
identify the highest risk pathways for introduction of aquatic invasive species into US waters and to
implement management strategies to reduce the spread of these species. It will also require the National
Invasive Species Council to develop a comprehensive plan to create a national system of ecological surveys
for rapid detection of aquatic invasive species, as well as a Federal Rapid Response Team to assist in rapid
response measures and provide training to state, tribal, and regional rapid responders.
In addition, EPA will develop regulations to evaluate effective treatment methods of invasive species that
will protect human health, public safety, and the environment. Finally, it will authorize aquatic invasive
species research, particularly on the rates and patterns through which non-indigenous aquatic species
spread through the U.S. aquatic ecosystems and it will establish a research, development, and
demonstration program to create a wide set of environmentally sound methods and treatment tools for
detecting, preventing, controlling and eradicating aquatic invasive species.
Finally, Schumer announced that the full Senate Appropriations Committee approved the Energy and
Water Development FY08 Appropriations Bill which includes $1 million for the Chautauqua Lake,
New York Aquatic Plant Control to share with two other national projects. Federal funds will be used to
combat an invasive aquatic plant control problem.
“Chautauqua Lake’s recreational industry, on which the regional economy depends, has been impaired despite
the best efforts of local officials to address the problem. It is time we take off the gloves and
uproot this problem once and for all” added Schumer.
In May, Schumer was successful in bringing representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers to visit the
Chautauqua Lake area on May 21 to see first hand the damage caused by the rapid spread of the Eurasian
Milfoil. In February, Schumer had called on the United States Army Corps of Engineers to immediately
step in to counteract the rapid growth of invasive weeds.
Invasive species are non-native plants, animals, insects or other organisms that can cause harm to the
environment, farm land, crops, bodies of water, and even human health. Invasive species are a form of
biological pollution and are recognized as one of the leading threats to biodiversity in Upstate New York.
Invasive species attack all aspects of Upstate New York’s agricultural and environmental sectors and have
been around since the beginning of international commerce.
Schumer was joined by County Executive Greg Edwards, Vice President of Chautauqua Lake Association Chris Yates,
and Bonnie Pascholski from the Loomis Bay Association.
