Millville Lake Protective Association
Salem, NH
Salem, NH
MLPA News
NHDES Cyanobacteria HAB Updates
May 25, 2023 - We recently received this important email from Kate Hastings, Cyanobacteria HAB Program Coordinator Watershed Management Bureau, Water Division NH DES to help you stay safe on the lake this summer.
"When you head to the water this summer, always perform your personal risk-assessment prior to swimming or letting your pets in. Look for any discoloration or unusual growth, and if you see something suspicious stay out of the water and report it! Please report through our NEW bloom report form. This survey will get all the information we need from you in one round of communication, allowing us to more quickly respond to your reports. You can also find this form by searching "NHDES HAB" on the internet, navigating to our page, and scrolling down the "See a bloom?" section.
Our Healthy Swimming Mapper also has new features, including more information about each warning, pictures of the bloom, and alerts posted directly on the map. We are working on adding links to the cyanobacteria history for each waterbody, but that will be coming soon! There is also a link to the bloom report form on this website.
We will also be issuing a weekly statewide cyanobacteria update. Sign up by selecting the "Healthy Swimming Updates" email list. Thank you all for being our "eyes on the water", I look forward to working with you to help your communities swim safely this season!"
"When you head to the water this summer, always perform your personal risk-assessment prior to swimming or letting your pets in. Look for any discoloration or unusual growth, and if you see something suspicious stay out of the water and report it! Please report through our NEW bloom report form. This survey will get all the information we need from you in one round of communication, allowing us to more quickly respond to your reports. You can also find this form by searching "NHDES HAB" on the internet, navigating to our page, and scrolling down the "See a bloom?" section.
Our Healthy Swimming Mapper also has new features, including more information about each warning, pictures of the bloom, and alerts posted directly on the map. We are working on adding links to the cyanobacteria history for each waterbody, but that will be coming soon! There is also a link to the bloom report form on this website.
We will also be issuing a weekly statewide cyanobacteria update. Sign up by selecting the "Healthy Swimming Updates" email list. Thank you all for being our "eyes on the water", I look forward to working with you to help your communities swim safely this season!"
MLPA Spring Meeting
May 25, 2023 - Mark your calendars! MLPA Spring Meeting June 8th 6:30pm at the Centerpoint Community Church 101 School St. Salem, NH. This is a members-only meeting and membership forms will be available for non-members to join and current members to renew their membership (yearly dues are $30.00) prior to the start of the meeting. Guest speaker: Nisa Marks - Watershed Coordinator for NH DES. Ms. Marks will speak on why it's important to test the water quality during the summer months. Currently, the town of Salem only tests for E. coli at the town beach. The NH Volunteer Lake Assessment Program (VLAP) does that too, but also includes many more tests. What can we glean about the health of the lake from this ongoing data?
SOLitude Lake Management Treatment Dates
May 10, 2023 - 1st treatment June 9th. 2nd treatment June 28th. Both treatments using the chemical Sonar One. There are temporary water use restrictions (swimming and irrigation) that will be imposed during treatment. The letter from SOLitude Lake Management sent to Millville Lake abutters detailing the lake treatment is available here.
Concrete Barriers Moved at Dam Area
April 27, 2023 - Attention boaters. The concrete barriers at the dam area have been moved for putting your boat in the water.
Town of Salem Shore Lands and Wetlands Brochure
The town of Salem has produced a shore lands and wetlands brochure for regulations governing properties that are adjacent to a lake, pond, or the Spicket River. The brochure is available here.
MLPA 2023 Dues
We are now accepting MLPA membership dues payments for 2023. The MLPA membership year is from January 1st - December 31st and dues are only $30.00. Click here to support the MLPA. As always, thank you for your support to "protect and improve Millville Lake."
Millville Lake Dam
March 27, 2023 - We have been informed by Fred Wallace, Salem Municipal Services Department Deputy Director - Utilities, that the Millville Lake dam gate will be closed for the spring, summer & early fall season on or about April 21st.
Salem BOS Accepts Millville Lake Dam Grant
February 6, 2023 - At the February 6th Salem Board of Selectmen meeting the BOS accepted a grant in the amount of $1,000,000.00 from the NH Department of Environmental Services in State ARPA Funds for Millville Lake Dam.
Roy Sorenson, Municipal Services Director, spoke at the meeting and said the design is being finalized and there may be a Warrant article in 2024 for the project. He will provide updates to the BOS throughout the year. We will pass along any information regarding the dam project to MLPA members. You can view that portion of the meeting by clicking here (starting at 6:14.)
In regards to the dam project, we were told last year by Fred Wallace, Director of the Salem Municipal Services Utilities Division "Results of the subsurface explorations and revised stability analyses from spring 2021 indicate that the dam is founded on glacial outwash material, and depths to bedrock below the assumed bottom of the dam varied between the test borings from 7± feet to 23± feet. SLR, our engineering contractor, recommends the construction of concrete buttresses on the downstream face of the dam to provide the additional required normal force."
Roy Sorenson, Municipal Services Director, spoke at the meeting and said the design is being finalized and there may be a Warrant article in 2024 for the project. He will provide updates to the BOS throughout the year. We will pass along any information regarding the dam project to MLPA members. You can view that portion of the meeting by clicking here (starting at 6:14.)
In regards to the dam project, we were told last year by Fred Wallace, Director of the Salem Municipal Services Utilities Division "Results of the subsurface explorations and revised stability analyses from spring 2021 indicate that the dam is founded on glacial outwash material, and depths to bedrock below the assumed bottom of the dam varied between the test borings from 7± feet to 23± feet. SLR, our engineering contractor, recommends the construction of concrete buttresses on the downstream face of the dam to provide the additional required normal force."
NH Lakes Lakeside Newsletter
The winter 2022 issue of the NH Lakes Lakeside Newsletter is available for reading by clicking here.
MLPA 2023 Dates at Chaser's Poker Room
December 207, 2022 - Below are the 2023 dates that the MLPA will be the featured charity at Chasers Poker Room 7 Veterans Memorial Pkwy, Salem, NH 03079. 35% of each day's take will go to the MLPA.
Sunday February 26th - Tuesday February 28th
Sunday August 13th - Saturday August 19th
Sunday February 26th - Tuesday February 28th
Sunday August 13th - Saturday August 19th
MLPA Fall 2022 Meeting Notes
The MLPA Fall 2022 Meeting notes can be read by clicking here.
Electrofishing Report
An electrofishing study was done by SOLitude Lake Management on June 23, 2022 to provide an in-depth representation and analysis of the current state of the Millville Lake fishery. This was done to collect data for a possible future fish stocking project. The report can be read by downloading the file below.
| millville_lake_electrofishing_report_spring_2022.pdf |
LakeFest 2022 Thanks & Photos
August 26, 2022 - We hope everyone who attended LakeFest 2022 had a marvelous time. A big thanks to everyone who hosted the events! Click here for some photos of the day.
NH Cyanobacteria Bill HB 1066 Update
August 26, 2022 - House Bill 1066 requiring the commissioner of the Department of Environmental Services (DES) to prepare a plan relative to cyanobacteria blooms in New Hampshire, was signed by Governor Sununu in June! In addition to the plan, the bill creates an advisory committee to DES made up of expert stakeholders from state agencies, nonprofits, the medical, veterinary, and scientific communities, and members of local lake and watershed associations to ensure the plans success.
If you'd like to learn more about cyanobacteria visit our website here.
If you'd like to learn more about cyanobacteria visit our website here.
Beach Testing Report
Linda Mele Receives NH Lakes LakeSmart Award
August 22, 2022 - MLPA Board of Directors Secretary, Linda Mele, completed a shoreline restoration and erosion mitigation project to receive the coveted NH LAKES LakeSmart Award. Linda was thrilled to receive the award and told us "I would encourage anyone to take the time to complete the survey on the LakeSmart website, educate yourself to the safe practices of lake living, and schedule a site visit. We can all do a little bit to keep our unique properties safe for the lake." You can read Linda's LakeSmart story here.
Lead Fishing Tackle Ban and Lead Buy Back Program
July 16, 2022 - We have been informed by the Loon Preservation Committee (LPC) and the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHFG) to remind anglers about the ban on the sale and freshwater use of lead sinkers and jigs weighing one ounce or less for all freshwater in the state. The Loon Preservation Committee recently recorded its first lead-poisoned loon of the year. You can read the article by clicking here. Full details of the buyback and participating shops can be found at https://loon.org/loonsafe/lpc-2022-lead-tackle-buyback/loon.org/loonsafe/lpc-2022-lead-tackle-buyback/
MLPA Spring 2022 Meeting Notes
July 5, 2022 - The MLPA Spring meeting notes from the June 7th meeting are now on the website for members only. Click the 'MLPA Meeting Notes Members Only' icon above to access the notes. If you are a member and cannot access the meeting notes please let us know by sending an email to info@millvillelake.org.
SOLitude Lake Management Weed Treatment
July 15, 2022 Update - The MLPA Board of Directors wants everyone to know the "real behind the scene story" about the 2022 over abundant weed situation. Over the last four summers, we have had SOLitude, our lake management company, treat the weeds using state permits and approved chemicals. This has worked very well.
Then, when spring 2022 came we, as a Board of Directors, along with SOLitude applied for the usual New Hampshire permit to treat the weeds.
Then came the death knell to this year’s weed treatment program. The State of New Hampshire biologists found weeds in our lake that they identified as “endangered.” In fact, as it turns out that was not the case. THIS RESULTED IN SHUTTING DOWN THE WHOLE PERMITTING PROCESS! New Hampshire biologists did their needed reviews and tests but not till the 3rd week in July did we receive information that our weeds were misidentified by the NH biologists and the Natural Heritage Bureau (part of the NH Division of Forests and Lands.)
After repeated phone calls, e-mails to SOLitude and an emergency MLPA BOD meeting it was decided that the best course of action for us was to cancel this year's treatment due to the high expense of about $30K for a relatively short recreation season. If we treated the weeds now we would not see any real improvement until September.
Going forward, we have already had a long detailed conversation with SOLitude as to how we want to proceed in early spring 2023 barring any other unforeseen issues. Please know that the 2022 weed situation has been a significant concern to the entire BOD.
Questions and concerns please email them to info@millvillelake.org.
July 8, 2022 Update - SOLitude Lake Management, our lake management firm, has been contacted AGAIN in an effort to get an update on a weed treatment date. The situation is as follows: The State of NH has issued a “provisional” permit for the treatment of weeds in Millville Lake. The major consideration is the status of certain weeds in our lake that are “endangered.” State biologists are still evaluating how (and if) these plants need some sort of protection.
At this point SOLitude is optimistic that the state will allow the weed treatment of our lake. The timing of the approvals are unknown at this point as well as the actual treatment dates. SOLitude is hoping that they will have the state application approvals before the end of July.
One of the issues impacting the actual application date is a labor shortage both at SOLitude and the State of NH. We will do our best to keep everyone up to date. Thank you for your support and be assured that your MLPA Board of Directors is doing all we can under these circumstances.
June 28, 2022 Update - We have been in regular contact with SOLitude Lake Management regarding dates for our weed treatment. As of late last week the State of NH had not issued a permit for the weed treatment. We are told by SOLitude that the state has identified an endangered plant (weed) in our lake and that is holding up the permit. SOLitude continues to work with the state on this issue.
May 7, 2022 - We contacted SOLitude Lake Management to let them know we would like this year's weed treatment to be done using Sonar. Sonar was applied in 2018 and was very effective in weed control and can be applied before the start of the summer season. NOTE: The use of Sonar will be dependent on SOLitude getting approval from the State.
What is Sonar? Sonar (Fluridone) is an aquatic herbicide applied to achieve control of spiny naiad and southern naiad. It's main action is to disrupt photosynthesis. The chlorophyll is degraded by sunlight and the plants effectively starve to death. It is systemic acting and it controls the entire plant including the root structures.
Read the letter sent by SOLitude to Millville Lake abutters here.
Then, when spring 2022 came we, as a Board of Directors, along with SOLitude applied for the usual New Hampshire permit to treat the weeds.
Then came the death knell to this year’s weed treatment program. The State of New Hampshire biologists found weeds in our lake that they identified as “endangered.” In fact, as it turns out that was not the case. THIS RESULTED IN SHUTTING DOWN THE WHOLE PERMITTING PROCESS! New Hampshire biologists did their needed reviews and tests but not till the 3rd week in July did we receive information that our weeds were misidentified by the NH biologists and the Natural Heritage Bureau (part of the NH Division of Forests and Lands.)
After repeated phone calls, e-mails to SOLitude and an emergency MLPA BOD meeting it was decided that the best course of action for us was to cancel this year's treatment due to the high expense of about $30K for a relatively short recreation season. If we treated the weeds now we would not see any real improvement until September.
Going forward, we have already had a long detailed conversation with SOLitude as to how we want to proceed in early spring 2023 barring any other unforeseen issues. Please know that the 2022 weed situation has been a significant concern to the entire BOD.
Questions and concerns please email them to info@millvillelake.org.
July 8, 2022 Update - SOLitude Lake Management, our lake management firm, has been contacted AGAIN in an effort to get an update on a weed treatment date. The situation is as follows: The State of NH has issued a “provisional” permit for the treatment of weeds in Millville Lake. The major consideration is the status of certain weeds in our lake that are “endangered.” State biologists are still evaluating how (and if) these plants need some sort of protection.
At this point SOLitude is optimistic that the state will allow the weed treatment of our lake. The timing of the approvals are unknown at this point as well as the actual treatment dates. SOLitude is hoping that they will have the state application approvals before the end of July.
One of the issues impacting the actual application date is a labor shortage both at SOLitude and the State of NH. We will do our best to keep everyone up to date. Thank you for your support and be assured that your MLPA Board of Directors is doing all we can under these circumstances.
June 28, 2022 Update - We have been in regular contact with SOLitude Lake Management regarding dates for our weed treatment. As of late last week the State of NH had not issued a permit for the weed treatment. We are told by SOLitude that the state has identified an endangered plant (weed) in our lake and that is holding up the permit. SOLitude continues to work with the state on this issue.
May 7, 2022 - We contacted SOLitude Lake Management to let them know we would like this year's weed treatment to be done using Sonar. Sonar was applied in 2018 and was very effective in weed control and can be applied before the start of the summer season. NOTE: The use of Sonar will be dependent on SOLitude getting approval from the State.
What is Sonar? Sonar (Fluridone) is an aquatic herbicide applied to achieve control of spiny naiad and southern naiad. It's main action is to disrupt photosynthesis. The chlorophyll is degraded by sunlight and the plants effectively starve to death. It is systemic acting and it controls the entire plant including the root structures.
Read the letter sent by SOLitude to Millville Lake abutters here.
Clean River Project Lake Cleanup
May 10, 2022 - A huge thanks to the Clean River Project for once again helping to protect and improve Millville Lake with their annual lake cleanup. Click here to see more cleanup photos!
MLPA Spring Newsletter 2022
May 9, 2022 - MLPA Spring newsletter is available to read here.
Clean River Project Spring Cleanup
April 25, 2022 - The Clean River Project will be on Millville Lake Wednesday April 27th to begin phase 1 of the spring cleanup - which is the walk around, bag and tag trash, make piles of limbs, branches, etc. and return any furniture to the homeowners.
Once the lake level rises after April 30th, they will look at the levels to see when a good time will be to launch their boat to pickup phase 1 debris.
Once the lake level rises after April 30th, they will look at the levels to see when a good time will be to launch their boat to pickup phase 1 debris.
Dredging 101 Webinar
February 12, 2022 - SOLitude Lake Management recently presented an overview of lake dredging, something that is on the minds of the MLPA board of directors as a potential way of decreasing weeds and increasing the recreational benefits of the lake. Click here to view the webinar.
Millville Lake Dam Repair Update
February 12, 2022 - We received an update on the Millville Lake dam repair from Fred Wallace, Director of the Salem Municipal Services Utilities Division. Fred tells us:
"Results of the subsurface explorations and revised stability analyses from spring 2021 indicate that the dam is founded on glacial outwash material, and depths to bedrock below the assumed bottom of the dam varied between the test borings from 7± feet to 23± feet. SLR, our engineering contractor, recommends the construction of concrete buttresses on the downstream face of the dam to provide the additional required normal force. We’ve budgeted to move ahead with survey, overtopping assessment, design of repairs, and permitting in 2022. I don’t believe we will need to lower the lake below normal levels for the summer.
You should be able to go ahead with your plans for weed treatment. We will reach out to you as we get closer to design and set up an informational meeting with your association."
"Results of the subsurface explorations and revised stability analyses from spring 2021 indicate that the dam is founded on glacial outwash material, and depths to bedrock below the assumed bottom of the dam varied between the test borings from 7± feet to 23± feet. SLR, our engineering contractor, recommends the construction of concrete buttresses on the downstream face of the dam to provide the additional required normal force. We’ve budgeted to move ahead with survey, overtopping assessment, design of repairs, and permitting in 2022. I don’t believe we will need to lower the lake below normal levels for the summer.
You should be able to go ahead with your plans for weed treatment. We will reach out to you as we get closer to design and set up an informational meeting with your association."
Keep Leaves Out of the Lake
From the Salem Municipal Services Department - Engineering Division. "Did you know yard waste, including leaves and grass clippings, can be a source of water pollution? When yard waste ends up in our town streets and sidewalks it flows into our storm drains. From there, it goes directly to our local streams, rivers, wetlands, ponds and lakes where it decays increasing the amount of nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorus in the water body, and degrading water quality. Learn more about leaf and yard waste handling, including how to properly dispose of it here: https://www.townofsalemnh.org/.../salemnh_yardwaste..."
NH Lakes Lake Smart PowerPoint Slides
June 9, 2021 - Andrea LaMoreaux's, NH LAKES President, PowerPoint slides from her LakeSmart Living presentation given at the MLPA Spring meeting of June 8th, 2021 are available below to download.
| millville_lake_association_lakesmart_intro_06-08-2021.pdf |
NH Lakes Canada Geese - The Ugly Truth
June 9, 2021 - "Canada Geese - Ugly Truth" provided by NH Lakes is available available to read here.
April 12, 2021 - More details of the planned drilling at the Millville Lake dam scheduled for April 16th and April 19th.
NH Lakes LakeSmart Booklet
April 11, 2021 - NH Lakes provided a must-read booklet filled with helpful information on lake friendly living. Download your copy today.
| lakesmartbooklet_2019.pdf |
A Message From MLPA President, Jim Falls
October 26, 2020 - Please read an important message from the MLPA President, Jim Falls, on our blog.
SOLitude Lake Management 2019 Water Quality Testing
March 20, 2020 - SOLitude Lake Management performed Millville Lake water quality testing on August 29, 2019 and September 27, 2019. I received the August water quality results, reviewed them and nothing popped out to me as bad or out of the ordinary. I did not receive the September results until late October (due to a billing mix up), so I did not want to report back to you with only one set of results. When I finally received the September results I reviewed them again and again saw nothing of concern. Our Fisheries Biologist (Ben German) reviewed both sets of results and for the most part he also saw no red flags. He did however feel like it was worth mentioning that the Conductivity was a little higher than he would expect for a water body in this region/geography. Conductivity is a measure of water’s capability to pass electrical flow. This ability is directly related to the concentration of ions in the water. These conductive ions come from dissolved salts and inorganic materials such as alkalis, chlorides, sulfides and carbonate compounds. Compounds that dissolve into ions are also known as electrolytes. The more ions that are present, the higher the conductivity of water. (definition taken from: https://www.fondriest.com/environmental-measurements/parameters/water-quality/conductivity-salinity-tds/.)
Ben's opinion was that the slightly elevated conductivity was possibly due to road salts from the winter. There is no harm at all with the readings seen (330-350 umhos/cm), as they fall well within the acceptable range to support diverse aquatic life (100-1,000 umhos/cm.)
All water quality results looked good, with no reason for concern.
Peter Beisler SOLitude Environmental Scientist
Ben's opinion was that the slightly elevated conductivity was possibly due to road salts from the winter. There is no harm at all with the readings seen (330-350 umhos/cm), as they fall well within the acceptable range to support diverse aquatic life (100-1,000 umhos/cm.)
All water quality results looked good, with no reason for concern.
Peter Beisler SOLitude Environmental Scientist
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