Weed Management Update
In January the nonprofit Fund for Roaring Book Lake extended an open invitation to a Zoom information session regarding ProcellaCOR, an herbicide developed specifically to target an invasive weed common to many lakes. Our nonprofit has taken no position on whether ProcellaCOR should be applied to Roaring Brook Lake; we share with all lake residents a commitment to public safety.
During that session, which was hosted in partnership with the RBLPOA and the RBL Garden Club, our neighbors in Kent shared their experience applying ProcellaCOR to China Lake. Until then, it had been experiencing an explosion in Eurasian milfoil. You can learn more about that information session by clicking on this link in the News section of our website.
Here are some relevant scientific facts:
● ProcellaCOR has been applied to more than 100 lakes in the Northeast, including more than 30 in New York State, such as Lake George
● Following its application, there are no restrictions on drinking water or on contact recreation such as swimming
● ProcellaCOR has been the subject of dozens of peer-reviewed scientific studies since it was first developed in 2010
● The herbicide was approved by the EPA in 2017, by New York State in 2019, and by 47 other states
● The EPA has identified no risks from ProcellaCOR of concern to human health. Toxicology studies found no adverse acute or chronic effects. The EPA concluded that drinking water exposure to ProcellaCOR does not pose a human health risk and that no drinking water restrictions were necessary
● Toxicological testing on ProcellaCOR included the evaluation of impacts on fish, birds, mammals and aquatic invertebrates. The testing showed no harm and there have been no limitations placed on the use of ProcellaCOR due to vertebrate or invertebrate impacts
Our goal in hosting the information session was to begin what we assume will be a lengthy and complicated process of educating ourselves about various ways to control weeds in our lake. At the final RBLPOA meeting last September, our lake manager, A.J. Reyes encouraged the community to undertake this educational process. Any decision about applying ProcellaCOR can only be taken by the town.
As we move closer to the start of summer, we look forward to constructive conversations with our neighbors about this important issue. We encourage everyone to attend the State of the Lake meeting at Town Hall with A.J. Reyes in May.
