Winter Newsletter and Membership Drive 2020
| Chemo Pond Lake Association Newsletter #6 |
The CPLA email address is: chemopondla@gmail.com
Greetings! The holidays are over and winter has settled in over the pond. Hopefully you all are staying warm and dry.
As mentioned in previous newsletters, we are committed to providing periodic updates to our members regarding state of the membership, the dam, environmental opportunities to participate in protecting our lake and participate, and other topics that arise. So, here is our update as of December 2019:
- Membership: we had a tremendous response to our first membership drive December 2017. Out of 193 possible members, 80 signed up for 2018, which was a great first response. Our response to our membership drive for 2019 was similar: 72 signed up. First, thank you to those who have continued to provide support. As you will see in the updates below, not only your financial support but your demonstrated commitment on the part of the Chemo Pond community is essential to our on-going negotiations with Maine Forests and Logging Museum, and federal and state agencies. We need to reach an acceptable resolution to the dam, gain everyone’s long term commitment to reasonable water levels, and build a community dedicated to protecting Chemo Pond and its environs. So, please remain involved in CPLA and encourage others to join.
In that spirit, we know that email can be an effective way to share updates and information, but we learned last year that it is not the most effective way to maintain membership in our organization. Consequently, for critical communication and updates we have decided to utilize regular mail with the goal of keeping as many people involved as possible. Please complete the enclosed membership form and join/rejoin our community. We not only need your financial support, but also your voice and participation. As you will see below, we have additional expenses, so if you can provide an additional contribution, it will help us greatly.
- The dam: To recap our notes in our Spring newsletter and from the annual meeting in July:
- In December, 2018, we submitted a proposal to Leonard Mills to purchase the dam. LM met with federal and states agencies who encouraged them to have the roll dam removed in return for improvements to the LM dam these agencies claim they will fund.
We took this move seriously, keeping our primary goal in mind: to ensure a water level that works for all property owners on the pond. Consequently, we started the process of requesting a water level hearing. This is a formal process that lake property owners can request for an official lake level to be established that is binding. It will guarantee an agreed upon level in perpetuity. We have gathered all the required signatures and all three towns have verified them. We are ready to complete the final application if necessary.
- Establishment of the Blackman Stream Advisory Committee (BSAC). After several discussions with LM and state and federal agencies, it was determined that a committee should be formed to reach a resolution to the roll dam that will meet the needs of all parties. On April 9, 2019, we had our first meeting which included representatives from: US Fish and Wildlife, Maine Dept of Marine Resources, Maine Forest and Logging Museum and CPLA. It was a productive meeting where we agreed that our purpose was to resolve issues driven by lake levels and to maintain water levels that meet the needs of the LM, fish and wildlife, and Chemo Pond residents. This first meeting allowed participants to air concerns and articulate needs—and agree on how to work together going forward.
Throughout the summer we continued to meet. We agreed upon a water level target of 125.8 (the height of the roll dam) and began to discuss how CPLA and the Maine Forest and Logging Museum (will refer to MFLM as LM, short for Leonard’s Mills) would work together to manage this target at the Museum if the roll dam is removed. And this is where we have run into difficulty. LM is uncomfortable utilizing a mechanism that will achieve the agreed upon water level target and we are not willing to enter into an agreement that is guaranteed to give us less.
Consequently, we decided to engage expert advice and counsel. Andy Hamilton, an environmental attorney from Eaton Peabody, has been invaluable in providing support and guidance in a process that has gotten increasingly complicated. The good news is we have had several productive discussions with representatives from several state agencies and are now investigating a variety of options. We believe we can find a solution that meets the needs of all parties: 1) CPLA: we are able to maintain a water level of approx. 125.8 in the lake, weather conditions permitting; 2) DMR: fish passage is uninhibited during critical times of the year and maintenance/management issues are resolved; 3) LM has limited responsibility for maintaining water levels in the Pond.
We know this is taking longer than you may have anticipated and we appreciate your patience. We could have gone forward with an agreement with LM, but it would not have met our needs—or theirs–in the long run, nor would it have been sustainable. Our goal is that a solution is reached that is workable and final. We do not want to be back at the drawing board in a few years.
Lastly, any solution that is hammered out will be put out to our membership for a vote. This impacts your lifestyle, your family and your homes’ values. Any solution may involve a need for funding and contribution of time. Our goal is that the solution we reach will meet the needs stated above and will justify the expense. If you have any questions or want to provide input, please don’t hesitate to contact any of the CPLA board members. We would appreciate your sharing your concerns and ideas with them rather than approaching the various parties individually. It keeps our message clear and on point which, at this juncture, is critical in avoiding misunderstanding and confusion in our negotiations. Board members’ contact information is on the last page of this document.
- Environmental News: Kathy Trenholm
As a consequence of working with BSAC, we had gauges placed in Chemo Pond for most of the summer. We placed 1 gauge in each town. Daily data was collected at all three sites. With all the rain this summer, there was considerable time when the gauge was completely under water! The data will be reported to US Fish and Wildlife to compare with water level data from the dam at Leonard’s Mill. This will help us determine the water level to expect in the lake when the water level at that dam is at a particular level.
Other big news is on August 17, we hosted the first ever Invasive Plant Paddle on Chemo Pond! It was a blast. We would like to give a great big thank you to Roberta Hill and the team from Lake Stewards of Maine who led us on our journey. We met at Crossroads Christian Camp and had a brief introduction on the importance of invasive plant surveillance, how to collect samples and the easy steps to determine if a plant in possibly an invasive or not. Next it was into our boats to survey the local area for all types of aquatic plants. Lastly we gathered again on shore to review what we had found. Luckily NO invasive plants were found but we identified over 30 varieties of aquatic plants in Chemo Pond. All this data will be recorded at www.lakesofmaine.org. This is the first time that any aquatic plant data has ever been recorded for Chemo Pond. Knowing what plants naturally occur in our pond will help citizen scientists and researchers in the future understand the health of our lake.
Another big benefit of this plant paddle is that I have begun to form our very own Invasive Plant Investigative Team. We have 5 members and we surveyed other areas of the lake later in the summer and fall. I plan to expand on this in future years. To that goal, we will try to host another Invasive Plant Paddle in conjunction with Lake Stewards of Maine next summer. Watch the website for details.
- Website Development Rudy Shorette
The CPLA website is fully functional. We will use the website to keep members posted on developments, share news on activities and have educational sections that are relevant to our environment. We welcome contributions from anyone concerning Chemo Pond. Photos are always welcome. The website address is: www.chemopond.org. If you have ideas or suggestions, please email us at chemopondla@gmail.com. We periodically check this email. If you have information regarding activities or events in the greater Chemo Pond area, we can add them to our calendar and news sections.
One thing to check the new website for is an announcement regarding a lake wide summer party. We think it would be a great opportunity to connect with our fellow members and lake user and enjoy each other’s company.
- Membership: New and Renewal
Any adult owner or resident of property bordering on Chemo Pond is eligible. There is one membership available per lot and the cost is $25 per year. In addition, there is an option for those who do not own land on the pond to get involved. We are offering a Supporter Option for $10. Supporters will be included on our newsletter, activities and meetings, though they will not be able to vote on decisions or board members. This provides the opportunity to participate with an organization dedicated the stewardship of our pond and helps concentrate our impact. Both participatory options are tax deductible. Please complete the attached form whether you are a new or renewing member and include a check made payable to: Chemo Pond Lake Association. Send to: Chemo Pond Lake Association, 4 Yawaca Road, Box 23, Clifton, Maine, 04428. Once again, we would appreciate any additional financial contribution you could make to help cover expenses related to the dam negotiation process.
As a member you will have the opportunity to:
- Participate in subcommittees that will form to address specific topic or issues. Currently we have subcommittees to research invasive and protected species, roll dam, and membership. New subcommittees will be formed as needed.
- Contribute to our Board meeting agendas. We will announce our meetings, on the website, at least 7 days in advance. These meetings are open and are modeled after your typical town hall meetings. You will be encouraged to participate at meetings by asking questions/making comments after regular business is concluded.
- Participate in special meetings. We anticipate that when we need to make major decisions that impact the entire community—such as the water level hearing, special meetings will be called, and the entire membership will vote on the issue at hand.
- Attend the annual meeting. Our annual meeting will be held each year in July to ensure the greatest participation. At this meeting, 1/3 of the Board seats will be up for election. In addition, current topics will be discussed, and we hope to have a special speaker like we did last year.
- Contribute your ideas and knowledge to help guide the Board in making decisions that will be in the best interest of the community and the Pond and the larger eco-system. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the lake, please address them to one of the board members. We are committed to representing all points of view. The board members are:
- Charlie Clemons, Bradley: chemoponder@gmail.com; 207-299-2964
- Ron Colley, Bradley: rcolley636@aol.com; 207-478-6242
- Carolyn Miller, Clifton carmillr@live.com; 207-944-3655
- Leo “Butch” Robichaud, Eddington butchrobichaud@gmail.com
- Rudy Shorette, Bradley exilebear1@gmail.com; 207-843-5575
- Kathy Trenholm trenholm2014@gmail.com; 508-450-0276
- Leslie Spencer, Clifton takecaremassage@aol.com; 207-884-8603
- Leslie Sturzenberger, Bradley lsalgonquin@earthlink.net; 315-569-7990
- Deborah True, Clifton debgtrue@gmail.com; 207-843-5930
Again, many thanks for joining the Association last year and for renewing for this upcoming year. We look forward to welcoming new members to our organization. And come out and enjoy the lake—the water is “n-ice”!