Water Safety
Water safety is always an important issue in the summer, particularly when high-powered boats and jet-skis are involved. For the safety of swimmers and to reduce shoreline erosion, it is important that water-craft operators observe the State Boating Regulation of no more than 5 mph 100 ft. from shorelines.

Dam Upgrade
The KLC Board has contracted an engineer to prepare a construction proposal for submission to NYDEC to reinforce the dam this fall and winter. The dam is sound but there is an old section that the KLC Board and the engineers feel should be reinforced and covered with coffer steel. A preliminary estimate of cost is about $60,000.

Water Quality and Weeds
In 1997, ‘98 and ‘99 weed growth was so thick in the summer that boats had difficulty traveling around the lake and blue-green algae scum was so thick on the surface that swimming often was impaired. A proposal to add weed carp to the lake to control the weeds was refused by NYDEC but, at the same time, they submitted a warning that phosphorus levels must be reduced or a serious fish-kill might occur due to the high algae levels. In response, a program to treat the lake with alum (aluminum sulfate) to bind phosphorus in the bottom as aluminum phosphate was proposed to DEC in 2000 and initiated in 2001. Since then, a total of 200,000# of alum has been added to the deep regions of the lake and the surface. This has reduced total phosphorus load in the summer by about 95%. Weed growth, which also has been effected by the milfoil weevil, has been reduced substantially so that very few weeds are on the surface in the summer at the 6 to 12-ft. depths. Pondweeds are relatively thick along some muddy shorelines this summer and will have to be addressed in future years, but most shorelines are relatively clear. Algae levels are about 1/5th the normal level and water clarity has been 5 to 7 ft. up to Aug. 1st. Normally, water clarity is 2 to 3 ft. in the summer. Appeals in the Newsletter to have septic systems cleaned more often have helped provide clearer water – thanks to shoreline residents who have responded.