| The Lake George region is a resource of unparalleled beauty located within the Adirondack Park. Lake George itself is heavily used for all kinds of recreation, yet remains a high quality natural resource. Over the past several decades, land development within its 300-square-mile watershed has accelerated greatly, threatening community character, natural resources and water quality. As a result, planning for the future of Lake George has become increasingly important and, in particular, protecting lake water quality has become more and more of a priority.
Since the mid-1990s, substantial financial resources have been committed to protecting the lake and improving water quality. A wide variety of projects were completed, including improvements along stream corridors to reduce run-off entering the lake, education and outreach programs, and efforts to better manage proliferation of Eurasian milfoil, a non-native aquatic plant. Although these projects progressed well, local government leaders recognized the need to establish a consensus on priority actions to protect and improve the lake.
With funding provided through the Environmental Protection Fund, a regional planning effort to protect Lake George began. Preparation of the plan was overseen by a committee comprised of representatives of the nine municipalities and three counties around the lake; Soil and Water Conservation Districts; the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service; state agencies; and other stakeholder organizations, including the Lake George Association, Fund for Lake George, Darrin Fresh Water Institute, Lake George Basin Land Conservancy, and Cornell Cooperative Extension.
"Lake George - Planning for the Next Century", a long-term strategy for protecting and improving the water quality and natural resources of Lake George was completed in 2001. This plan built on previous planning efforts, particularly the 1987 Plan for the Future of the Lake George Park, and set out the next generation of actions that will be needed to protect and improve Lake George.
The establishment of this long-term water quality strategy will assure that local governments, state agencies, and other organizations work together to maximize the effectiveness of limited financial resources. Such a strategy will also improve the ability of local governments to access various funding sources for project implementation.
With completion of "Lake George - Planning for the Next Century", the committee which oversaw its completion has committed to continuing this collaborative effort by signing a Memorandum of Agreement creating the Lake George Watershed Conference, to focus on implementation. |
