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Lakes Environmental Association Recommends Closure of Songo Lock

July 29, 2010 - NAPLES -- When Peter Lowell received a call from a waterfront property owner about "a lot of plants" along the Lower Songo River, he instantly became very concerned.


Taking a boat ride down the channel from Songo Lock toward Sebago Lake, Lowell's concern turned into a major worry. He termed the milfoil infestation as "nasty."


"I saw big plants and fragments everywhere. It's an absolute mess right now. We have fragments floating their way toward the Lock and big plants in the boating lane--and it's not even August. The situation we have here is unbelievable," Lowell said. "If we don't do something drastic, like closing the Lock, we could lose all the good work we've done along the Upper Songo, as well as lose Brandy Pond and Long Lake."


Lowell, who is the executive director of Lakes Environmental Association, is convinced the Songo Lock must be closed until an effective, long-term strategy is developed to minimize the risk to Upper Songo River, Brandy Pond and Long Lake.


The ultimate decision will be made by commissioners of three Maine state boards--the Department of Conservation, the Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. A DEP inspector is expected to tour the Songo River this week.


"We don't want to discourage people from taking a ride down the river to the Lock; we just don't want them traveleing from the infested area, through the Lock to Brandy Pond and Long Lake, at least at this point until we get a handle on this situation," Lowell said.


If the state declines to close the Lock, Lowell said the alternative is to increase boat inspections at the Lock for the remainder of the season. Earlier this month, LEA doubled inspection hours there. Since the Lock is open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. daily, Lowell says LEA lacks the manpower and financial ability to provide inspection coverage for that entire period.


LEA has 20 inspectors--some full-time, others part-time--working eight area water bodies, as well as the Lock and Sebago State Park.


"We'll try our best to catch any milfoil before it gets upstream," Lowell said. "But it's a tough task."


When boat traffic is heavy at the Lock, it is very difficult for inspectors to make thorough checks of each craft. On a moderate day, like Monday, inspectors, like Hannah Flagg, spent several minutes with boat operators talking about milfoil--what it looks like, the harm it can cause, and what they can do to help protect the lake. They were also able to carefully inspect boats for dangling plants or fragments. Once a boat left the Lock, Flagg walked along the channel with a net in search of floating invasive plants.


LEA sent out an e-mail to its membership earlier this week asking boaters to avoid traveling through Songo Lock until the milfoil situation is addressed. The same message was passed along to local marina owners, encouraging them to keep rental boats from going through the Lock.


"This (recommendation to close the Lock) is as necessary and urgent as the cloing of Songo Lock in 2008 (because of high water)," said the LEA e-mail. "Milfoil plants are growing very densely on both sides of the river from the Lock to Sebago. Under the surface of the Songo, there's another river--of milfoil plants. This year, milfoil plants are emerging from the surface to flower along long stretches of the river. The channel that is free of plants continues to narrow. Boats cannot completely avoid the areas with milfoil."


Perfect storm of milfoil


So far, 2010 has been somewhat of a perfect storm for milfoil, resulting in the worst infestation of the Lower Songo River since routine monitoring began here in 2003. An early spring coupled with warm weather resulted in a long growing season.


Then, add a busy boat year.


Several weeks of outstanding summer conditions resulted in a steady stream of boat traffic along the Songo River. The number of boats traveling through Songo Lock rose 87 percent in May and June, from 368 vessels in 2009 to 690 this year. In 2009, a total of 3,980 boats passed through the Lock.


If the milfoil infestation was limited to riverbanks, boaters could avoid the plants. However, plants have been spotted in the middle of the channel. When traffic is heavy, some boaters move toward the edges, thus either catching plants on the vessels' props or cutting the milfoil, leaving fragments to float upstream to the Lock.


During a trip along the Lower Songo Monday morning, Lowell pointed out infested areas as well as milfoil fragments floating in the channel to a TV cameraman and a Maine Public Broadcasting Network reporter.


Lowell sees the Lower Songo infestation as a major threat to Brandy Pond and Long Lake, as well as defeating major clean-up efforts along the Upper Songo.


The milfoil removal process is time consuming and costly. Divers dig up milfoil roots, and vacuum up plants with a long, green-colored hose. Water and plants are then channeled into a stainless steel "sluiceway," where water is returned to the lake or pond, while the invasive plants funnel into onion bags.


"We've taken out tons of plants," Lowell said.


Many lake assoicaitons across the state have purchased, or are in the process of buying, "harvesters" to battle milfoil outbreaks. LEA's boat was donated, but it cost about $10,000 to outfit the craft. A grant from the Libra Foundation helped LEA put the boat into operation.


LEA was able to remove about three acres of milfoil along the Upper Songo--at a cost of nearly one quarter of a million dollars, funded by private donations, grants from foundations, and revenue from Maine's milfoil fund. LEA workers Christian Oren, Tyler Oren, Alex Kye and Jack Tragart continue to do "mop up" work this summer, as well as working on new milfoil "hot spots."


"We took up some plants that were nine-feet long," said Tragart, who is in his second season working with LEA. A senior at Lake Region High School, Tragart became interested in lake work after hearing LEA education specialist Bridie McGreavy speak about environmental issues during science class in middle school. Tragart's mom is a seventh grade science teacher, while older sister, Amy, is a water tester for LEA.


"We live near the Songo River, so I really don't want to see it ruined by milfoil," he said.


Milfoil "clogs" an existing ecosystem. Lowell said once plants were removed from the Upper Songo, LEA workers saw "more fish activity."


Lowell often receives phone calls from lakefront property owners, who fear milfoil may be taking over their waterfronts.


"Sometimes, it's a false alarm, but it's better to check it out than all of a sudden finding out you're battling a house fire," Lowell said.


Milfoil is an opponent, Lowell knows, that will continue to surface. Right now, he hopes to keep milfoil cornered in the Lower Songo until a long-term strategy can be developed.


by Wayne Rivet, The Bridgton News, July 29, 2010

Lakes: Sebago Lake
Regions: Sebago


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