Dear Lake Residents,

This is a particularly beautiful time of the year here at our lake. Our returning swan is sitting on her nest, the muskrats are active as are the beaver. The bald eagle has made its appearance a few times and hopefully everyone has remained healthy through this pandemic.

We have begun to bring the level of the lake up slowly this year as we now have a schedule for the herbicidal treatment for the non-native invasive weeds. We will continue to monitor the levels in the lake to ensure that all the shallow coves have enough water in them before we treat the whole lake. The initial application is scheduled for around April 28th-30th. The remaining boards will be placed in the dam at that time.

Why do we do this? It is very important to have as high a concentration of the herbicide for the first 45-60 days to be most effective. If the lake is flowing out of the dam, the concentration would become diluted. We will be monitoring the lake level throughout the treatment process.

SOLitude, our contractor, will use a combination of solid and liquid Sonar. Sonar is absorbed by the plants and travels down to their roots to kill them. The Sonar effectively stops the photosynthesis process. It is harmless to insects and animals in the concentrations that are used. However, out of the abundance of caution, there will be some restrictions. These will be posted on placards on telephone poles, and at road entrances and at beaches and the boat launch.

The main restriction is for no swimming, fishing or boating for twenty-four hours following the treatment. Also, one precaution you should heed is not to use lake water to irrigate plants or lawn for about 90 days. Remember Sonar interrupts photosynthesis and your lawn and plants will not be happy. Use well water instead.

SOLitude will conduct a pre-treatment survey about a week before the initial application which is scheduled for April 28th-30th.
Another survey will be in May followed by a booster application around May 30th. A month after that, SOLitude will conduct a further survey followed by a second booster application (June 30th). This is basically the same successful procedure that was employed back in 2013.

A final survey in August will be done to ensure success of the applications. Assuming normal rainfall during this time the lake will be at summer pool level and available for all recreational activities, except for first 24 hours following treatment.

If you have any questions or concerns, post them on the Groton Lakes Association Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/grotonlakes

Alex Woodle, Member
Groton Lakes Association
Great Ponds Advisory Committee