In Lake George, a continued fight around herbicide

The push for a permit heads back to court

By Zachary Matson

As the number of lake communities interested in using an herbicide to combat invasive milfoil continues to grow, the largest center of conflict around ProcellaCOR’s use has emerged in Lake George. On opposing sides: the Lake George Park Commission is eyeing the aquatic herbicide for use in its long battle against invasive milfoil and the Lake George Association is emphatically opposed and has gone to court to block application.

A lawsuit centered on the high-profile lake continues to fuel a contentious fight among lake advocates and managers and is scheduled for an appeals hearing in Albany on March 27. The suit could also offer guidance on how the Adirondack Park Agency determines whether to hold special adjudicatory hearings to evaluate proposed projects, which regulators have not done in over a decade. 

The APA is asking the Appellate Division, Third Department to overturn a lower Warren County court ruling that the agency erred in determining it did not need to hold a hearing before approving the herbicide be used in two bays on the lake after what the court described as a “one-sided” staff presentation. 

The LGA successfully argued that the APA staff presentation on the park commission’s plan was irregular and failed to offer the APA board a complete, impartial analysis on which to base its approval. But state lawyers in appeals briefs have argued the lower court judge overstepped and that the APA board based its decision on a complete record and the agency’s expert review.

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In new comments submitted to the state Department of Environmental Conservation on Feb. 16, the LGA signaled its continued opposition and outlined numerous alleged failings with the park commission plan, ranging from process fouls over recent notification letters to a growing understanding of the dynamic water flows within Lake George.

The group has argued that Lake George does not have the “quiescent waters” the herbicide is meant for and that it could be spread more widely or diluted more than expected. They have raised concerns about how the herbicide will impact native plants and whether it will exacerbate algae growth in the spring. 

“These are substantive and significant issues that go to the heart of whether it will work,” said Tom West, an attorney representing the lake association. 

The nonprofit, which has also organized opposition among local municipalities in the lake’s north basin, suggested the park commission should withdraw its plan until more concerns are addressed.

“Do we need to take this drastic leap to put a chemical herbicide in the lake when we have means to effectively manage the problem?” said Chris Navitsky, the Lake George waterkeeper. 

New application in the works  

The park commission this week plans to submit a new application with the DEC and one soon after with the APA, said Dave Wick, the agency’s executive director.

The commission has started notifying property owners near the treatment site. If the appeals court sides with the APA, Wick said, there may be enough time for state approvals for the park commission to use the herbicide before June 30, the latest they could do so before needing to wait until next year. The timing will be tight since the court is unlikely to release a ruling until April at the earliest. 

Wick said LGA leaders refuse to meet with him and suggested the organization is spreading misinformation in an effort to stop the project. He said scientific analysis as part of state and federal approvals as well as the examples of lakes that have used the product demonstrate its safety. He said he disapproves of the way the lake association seeks to demonize the herbicide.

“Now [the LGA] are simply an advocacy organization … regardless of the actual science behind something,” Wick said. 

He acknowledged that the lake is not in a crisis over milfoil, a point the LGA has cited as a reason to shelve the herbicide plan, but Wick argued for a new approach to tackling one of the lake’s worst invaders. 

“There is no crisis in Lake George of milfoil control but something shouldn’t have to reach a crisis level before you try a different strategy,” Wick said. 

Photo at top by Carl Heilman II