Latest Lake Morey Conditions

A complete success for Fairlee! Over twelve days in late June, Fairlee's Lake management contractor SOLltude treated Lake Morey with 165,000 gallons of alum. The combined effort led primarily by Tad Nunez, Town Administrator, and the Lake Morey Commission also included a partnership within the State Agency of ANR, the Lakes and Ponds Division, with funding by the Clean Water Board and permitting and oversight by the Wastewater Division. The result provided Fairlee with a $819 k project which was 100% funded to ensure the continued water quality in Lake Morey. Within days lake residents were commenting on the effectiveness of the treatment.
The image provided by one of Fairlee's residents shows the alum treatment in progress from a plane above Lake Morey. While not many details were provided with this image it appears from the differences in the colors of the lake waters it's a before, nearest to the plane and after, above the precipitate trails in the Lake.
Our hope is that with this second Alum treatment it will provide an additional 35 years without the blooms of cyanobacteria we experienced in the summer of 2022.

Presently Morey is undergoing a filamentous algae bloom comprised mostly of green algae, or Chlorophyceae. This is a very broad group of algae using green chlorophyll-a for photosynthesis. The most concentrated blooms are seen in the Northeast lake shore, Leach to Blaine.
Although Morey always has benthic and floating green algae growth, this is the largest bloom in recent memory.
Both Vt. Department of Environmental Conservation and SoLitude Lake Management (the company hired to treat the lake) have following comments:

• very common in Spring. SoLitude fields lots of calls on this subject
• this type is opportunistic, grows quickly and will cycle out as water warms, and other plants uptake soluble nutrients
• the alumina treatment will certainly tie-up excessive nutrients as designed, further impeding all algae growth.
• unlike Cyanobacteria, the group is non-toxic.

The mats can be raked up and disposed of in compost or leaf piles.

Update May 8:

Both testing and satellite telemetry confirm that the algae bloom on Lake Morey is not, I repeat, not the result of cyanobacteria. The water as of this time is considered to be within safe norms.
Thank you-

Chris Brimmer, Health Officer Town of Fairlee

You may have seen large bright green mats of algae beginning to form on the northeast end of Lake Morey. We do not believe they are cyanobacteria at this time due to the water temperature and formation at a time of sunlight filtered by a deep cloud deck over the weekend.

That said, out of caution we are advising residents and visitors to treat the mats with the same respect that they would treat cyanobacteria.

Thank you,

Chris Brimmer Health Officer Town of Fairlee

Please see this link for more information.

The Town Beach as been closed as of 4:55pm October 2, 2023

Perimeter sampling conducted a few days ago showed low PC number except for the North end, which is trapping Cyano a bit, not a high number. Mid lake sampling showed secchi = 5 m, and 10M sample slightly reduced from last sampling. Surface water numbers are low.

The Town Beach is now open for swimming. The cyanobacteria bloom is gone and the water has been clear for more than 48 hours.

The town beach is experiencing a cyanobacteria bloom - it looks thick, you can't see the bottom and the measurement with the fluorometer was 140 ug/l, where yesterday it was 6. A report  has been submitted to the state's cyanotracker. Measurements at our other shore locations and it varied from 41-78 at the boat launch (higher closer to shore) and 28 at the north end but clumps were floating in the water nearby.

Following are results from a spot check for secchi and Cyano mid-lake sampling. Note that secchi = 5.5 m, which is consistent with most recent results and not problematic. Deep water at 10M does reveal a slight increase in PC for Cyano, and there remains an observable cyanobacteria population occasionally surfacing, but not bloom conditions. Next sampling scheduled for Thursday or Friday this week.

The Town of Fairlee, Lake Morey Commission, and Solitude Lake Management have an effective partnership with Vermont’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), in part due to the persistent attention of Lakes and Ponds Manager Oliver Pierson. The Lakes and Ponds program believes that Lake Morey is eligible for an alum treatment. From a permitting perspective, an alum treatment in early summer 2024 is feasible based on recent conversations with DEC Lakes and Ponds. The accelerated funding and Solitude’s rapid completion of the Lake Morey Sediment Study (a.k.a. alum feasibility study) has significantly shortened the timeline. DEC Lakes and Ponds appreciates Lake Morey and Solitude as key sources of valuable scientific data.
 
Part of what has been time consuming is Vermont’s revision of the State Environmental Review Process (SERP).
 

• The accelerated funding and Solitude’s rapid completion of the Lake Morey Sediment Study (a.k.a. alum feasibility study) has significantly shortened the timeline. DEC Lakes and Ponds appreciates Solitude as a key source of valuable scientific data.
• Fairlee applied for and was accepted as a Priority Project for Emerging Contaminants by the Clean Water Board, one of only two projects in the state. (The line item from the Draft Intended Use Plan (IUP): Fairlee, Lake Morey Alum Treatment Project, 68 NPS-H 0 0, $790,000, EC)
• At this point, there appears to be just under $1M available in Emerging Contaminants Grant funding, which would be a 100% forgivable loan.

• The revised SERP is currently in internal review, after which a duly warned public meeting will be held on the Draft IUP which will then go out for 30-day public comment. 
• Once accepted, the revised SERP is subject to US EPA approval.

The Town Beach is re-opened Tuesday, June 27.

Water is murky, but no Cyanobacteria present.

The town beach is closed as of 11am due to Cyanobacteria. Please check back for updates

Readings for shore remain low; same for mid-lake readings. There are apparent patches of Cyano moving about the lake, none seem too large. Rain event this weekend will help. Note secchi readings remain excellent. Have noted growth of benthic green algae throughout the lake. Possible this alga is storing some of the nutrients, depriving Cyano, and aided by very clear water.

Safe to swim

Surface activity potential Cyano in the South end of lake, mid lake is extremely clear and void of algal mats. Clarity spectacular. Slight uptick in Phycocyanin level at 10m mark from last outing. Using viewscope secchi was 9m

See table

 

Yellow pollen has accumulated at the Town Beach trapped by the float lines and a northerly wind flow. It is not cyanobacteria.

Chris Brimmer, Health Officer

In response to the late summer cyanobacteria outbreak in the lake in 2022, the Town of Fairlee, together with the LMC, LMPA, and LMF, conducted a feasibility study that determined a treatment of Lake Morey would be necessary to address the phosphorus loading on the lake bottom to resolve that situation.

The Town has applied for permits to treat the lake with alum and has also been accepted as a high-priority project by the Clean Water Board to provide funding for this treatment.

Based on recent samples from May 31, 2023, that were submitted to the DEC labs, there has been an early cyanobacteria bloom on Lake Morey which, based on observation, has subsided with the cool weather and wind. The Town and the LMC are continuing to monitor the situation and will continue to provide notifications as the situation changes.

Bridget O’Brien of the VT Department of Health notified the Town that an alert has been posted on the Cyanobacteria Tracker.

She is also advising:
People may experience allergy-like reactions after coming in contact with cyanobacteria, and if they or pets drink the water nearby, they may experience more severe symptoms. Because of this, it is important that people and their pets stay clear of water near where there are cyanobacteria mats.

Press Release Fairlee to conduct Feasibility Study of Lake Morey
In response to the recent cyanobacteria bloom on Lake Morey, the Town of Fairlee has hired Solitude Lake Management to complete a comprehensive feasibility study to determine the best available methods to maintain a healthy lake environment. The Department of
Environmental Commission (DEC) Lakes and Ponds Program requires a feasibility study to be completed for the Town to secure funding from the State to address the cyanobacteria bloom on Lake Morey. The feasibility study was endorsed by the DEC and underwritten by the generous donation by the Lake Morey Foundation.
The study, starting in November of 2022, is an undertaking that is scheduled to be completed in early 2023. The study allows the Town to provide the necessary data to the DEC to determine a treatment plan to be implemented in 2024. It is hoped that DEC will include funding for a treatment plan for Lake Morey in the Vermont State fiscal year 2024 budget cycle, which starts July 1, 2023.
The Town of Fairlee has been working closely with the Lake Morey Commission, the Lake Morey Protective Association, the Lake Morey Foundation, the Aloha Foundation and the Lake Morey Resort in coordination with the State of Vermont to facilitate the feasibility study of Lake Morey.
DATE: 11/22/2022
CONTACT: Tad Nunez, Town Administrator
(802) 333–4363 x2

The State of Vermont and Town of Fairlee held a forum on Lake Morey conditions on October 26th.  See the Agenda, slide presentations, Zoom recording of the forum and the official minutes here

Town Beach is clear for five days in a row and the gate has been opened. Boat access is clear and water quality at that location is better than it has been in a couple of months. That said there may be local blooms at various locations around the lake and caution is still advised. This will be the last update unless another bloom is reported.

~Chris Brimmer, Health Officer Town of Fairlee

If you wish to volunteer and become a Lake Morey Watcher please contact the Health Officer Chris Brimmer for more information

Continuing Cyanobacteria Bloom on Lake Morey Speciation Report on the Cyanobacteria strain
Cyanobacteria report on Toxin status of Lake Morey from Peter Isles – VT DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation): Testing for toxins is not reasonable unless there is a need to know.  The testing is expensive and sees no need to test Lake Morey. Gloeotrichia in our area has never been found to be toxic.  The tests for toxins would not be able to detect anything at the levels of the Lake Morey concentrations of Gloeotrichia.
Phosphate levels in Lake Morey are going up.  The lake is very deep all over, thus the potential for a high total level of internal loading phosphate is higher – especially with their history of needing to use alum.
The Lake Scorecard has been revised with a new format two months ago.    
The expectation is the “Lay Monitoring” data entry will be automated and posted sooner on this site.

The Selectboard Meeting Sept. 19 included a discussion of Lake Morey water quality and the recording of that meeting can be found here. The discussion concerning Lake Morey and the Cyanobacteria bloom begins 56:55 minutes into the recording.

Lake Morey, Town of Fairlee VT, September 15, 2022

The town of Fairlee has been proactive by posting signs and warnings.

Town of Fairlee, Lake Morey Commission