The latest news about Maine lakes and ponds.

Water Levels Concern Residents on Pennesseewassee Stream

July 18, 2011 - Norway — The town has received complaints from residents who live by the wetlands off of lower Main Street, according to a report from Norway's Code Enforcement Officer Joelle Corey-Whitman.

The report says that residents living on Dean Avenue "have complained about the dam taking too much water out of the wetlands adjacent to Dean Avenue and leaving fish."

"We just kind of want to know why it happens," said one resident, gesturing at the muddy bottom of the wetlands that is exposed every summer when the dam on Pennesseewassee Stream, near the Gingerbread House, is closed.

Guidelines established by the town and Norway Lakes Association (NLA) mandate that the the dam be shut from June 1 to November 25 to "maintain adequate water supply throughout the summer." Guidelines provide for the dam to be opened in the case of heavy rains.

Town Manager David Holt said that the town worked primarily with people who live on the lake to set up the guidelines and address concerns, including the health of the lake and the interests of boaters.

"We get a lot of complaints from boaters," said Holt. "They can't dock their boats, or there are rocks in the lake that they run into when the water level is low."

Holt said that the concerns of the people who live on the stream, those who live on the lake, and various environmental considerations make managing the water level difficult. In the spring, he said, maintaining the water levels requires letting a great deal of water through the dam, while the drier summer months generally force the town to reduce the stream to a trickle.

"Some times of the year, there's too much water and we have to worry about flooding, and in the summer there isn't enough," said Holt.

Bruce Cook, president of the NLA says there is often not even consensus among the residents on the lake regarding how the water level ought to be managed. Some residents wish the levels were kept even higher than has been the case so far this year.

"Personally, I haven't been unhappy this summer, but the people at the North End of the lake have said that the levels are too low," said Cook.

He agreed with Holt that striking a balance between people who live on either side of the dam can be difficult.

"If you keep the people on the lake happy, then the people on the wetlands won't be happy, and the other way around," said Cook.

Devin Conway, Advertiser Democrat, July 2011


Lakes: Pennesseewassee Lake
Regions: Sebago


Print this story

Email this story

return to Lake News