Category Archives: News

News from around the lake.

28 August 2015: Wednesday night meeting to air grievances about Clary Lake well attended

CLA President and meeting moderator Malcolm Burson sits between State Representative Deb Sanderson and State Senator Christopher Johnson near the end of the August 26th meeting of Clary Lake shore owners and town of Whitefield officials. Photograph by George Fergusson 26 August 2015

Judging from the turnout (at least 61 people, maybe more) and the feedback (more than 31 people spoke, some of them more than once) I’d say last night’s standing-room-only meeting was a great success. The meeting, which came about as a result of discussions earlier in the month between Clary Lake Association (CLA) representatives and State Representative Deb Sanderson, was well-moderated by CLA President Malcolm Burson. In an outstanding show of solidarity, both State Representative Deb Sanderson (a Republican) and State Senator Christopher Johnson (a Democrat) ran the meeting together in a refreshing show of non-partisan cooperation. While the Clary Lake water level crisis is not a partisan issue, it was still refreshing and encouraging to see our two elected representatives completely aligned and working together towards a common goal. They will be working together to draft a letter to, and bring this matter to the attention of, the Department of Environmental Protection.

One of the main goals of the meeting had been to arrange for Clary Lake shore owners and other community members share their grievances with officials from both towns in the hopes of spurring them to take a more active role in support of the State’s defense of the water level order. To that end, Representative Sanderson had extended an invitation to both Jefferson and Whitefield officials to attend the meeting. While all 5 of Whitefield’s Select Board members were at the meeting, to everyone’s surprise, none of Jefferson’s 3 Select Board members decided to attend. This was an insult to the Jefferson residents that represented over 1/2 of the people that showed up and spoke at the meeting. Continue reading →

26 August 2015: Legislator to hear Clary Lake water level concerns at Whitefield meeting

State Representative Deb Sanderson contemplating the Clary Lake dam during a site visit on August 10th. Photograph by George Fergusson

A story about tonight’s meeting at the Whitefield Fire & Rescue building on Townhouse Road has appeared in today’s Kennebec Journal. KJ staff writer Paul Koenig interviewed Representative Deb Sanderson and several other people for the article. Representative Sanderson conducted a site visit to Clary Lake several weeks ago to view the current low water conditions. I think it is safe to say that Representative Sanderson was appalled by what she saw that day, prompting her to call tonight’s meeting to solicit input from Clary Lake shore owners and town officials from Jefferson and Whitefield.

A number of Whitefield Select Board members have indicated that they plan to attend the meeting, but the article suggests that nobody from Jefferson plans to be there. I certainly hope that is not the case: I stopped by to talk with Select Board member Robert Clark yesterday morning and he told me that the Board had discussed the meeting at their regularly scheduled Board meeting the night before and said that he would be unable to attend the meeting but that Select Board member Gregory Johnston planned be there. We will see. It would be unfortunate if no one from the Jefferson Select Board cares enough about the Clary Lake situation to bother attending the meeting.

The meeting is to be held at 6:00 PM and the public is welcome. The meeting was scheduled on relatively short notice and we’re still trying to get the word out. If anyone has any questions, feel free to contact me.

Legislator to hear Clary Lake water level concerns at Whitefield meeting

The picture at upper left shows Representative Sanderson viewing the Clary Lake dam during her August 10th site visit. I’ll be posting some additional pictures from that visit shortly.

24 August 2015: PPM/AQF file opposition to State’s motion, amend original petition

Last Friday, attorneys representing Pleasant Pond Mill LLC (PPM) and Aquafortis Associates LLC (AQF) made two filings in Lincoln County Superior Court. The first was an expected objection to the State’s July 6th Motion to Dismiss. The second filing was a motion to amend the original Rule 80C petition (aka the water level order appeal) which was initially filed back in February 2014. The State’s response to the Petitioner’s objections to the motion to dismiss is due September 4th. Presumably then the judge will then rule on the State’s motion to dismiss as well as the petitioner’s motion to amend the original petition.

The motion to amend the original 80C petition was apparently intended to correct or address certain deficiencies in the original filing that had been highlighted in the State’s motion to dismiss. I had wondered if PPM was going to try to join their recently dismissed appeal of Agency action with the water level order appeal but apparently not as there is nothing in the amended motion about it.

In other developments this month, according to a document filed on the State’s Interactive Corporate Services web site date August 14th, PPM has been reinstated as a LLC in good standing. This move was expected: in a 2014 Maine Supreme Court case, the Law Court determined that State law prevents an LLC in administrative dissolution from filing suit in court, they can only defend themselves in court.

16 August 2015: For waterfront owners on Clary Lake in Jefferson, the water has been lacking

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Stanely Whittier and his daughter Jane Roy on the shore of Clary Lake. Photo courtesy of Central Maine Papers.

Paul Koenig, Staff Writer with the Central Maine Papers has written another great article on the Clary Lake water level crisis. Koenig interviewed Stanley Whittier, his daughter Jane Roy, and recently elected Clary Lake Association President Malcolm Burson. Koenig also talked with Keel Kemper, wildlife biologist with the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Department of Environmental Protection spokesperson David Madore declined to answer any questions, citing the ongoing litigation. Koenig also interviewed dam owner Paul Kelley who said that if the state ever attempts to enforce the water level order, the outcome will be the state ending up taking over ownership of the dam. I for one don’t have a problem with that.

For waterfront owners on Clary Lake in Jefferson, the water has been lacking

Paul Koenig and I arranged to meet later that day after he completed his interview with Stanley Whittier and Jane Roy. I gave him the 50¢ tour of Clary Lake and its sorry environs which included a visit to the totally useless State boat launch (left) and a hike out to view the vast drained wetland at the northwest end of the lake (right). I took him out to stand next to the channel, and it was perfectly clear from the still water that there is no water flowing out of the lake at this time. The last picture (bottom left) shows Paul Koenig talking with Association President Malcolm Burson on his and Eleanor Goldberg’s so-called beach.

12 August 2015: Kelley’s recent appeal dismissed from Lincoln County Superior Court

Picture of Paul Kelley taken at the 15 October 2013 Lake Shore Owner meeting. Lincoln County News photo

At the Clary Lake Association Annual Meeting back on August 1st I provided an update on the Clary Lake water level order and where things stand (see post: “2015 Clary Lake Association annual meeting a great success). During that discussion I described a July 24th filing in Lincoln County Superior Court by dam owner Paul Kelley which I had only learned about the day before. The filing consisted of an appeal of a recent DEP decision to dismiss his petition for release from dam ownership, and a request for mediation. At that time I suggested that the appeal might be dismissed because Mr. Kelley filed it himself without the benefit of counsel. As it turned out, at a conference held on August 4th, Lincoln County Superior Court Judge Daniel Billings did dismiss the appeal stating “Because the filing in this matter was made on behalf of an LLC by a non-attorney, this matter is DISMISSED without prejudice.” One would have thought Mr. Kelley would have known that a lawyer is required when a Limited Liability Company (LLC) is involved in litigation in Superior Court. He certainly does now. Continue reading →

10 August 2015: Drained Beaver flowage adds water to Clary Lake

A funny thing happened over the weekend: the lake level which has been falling a consistent 1/4″ daily (due to evaporation only) had, without warning, risen 1/4″ by early Saturday afternoon without us having received any rain at all… This situation had me thinking I’d made a mistake in measuring the water level until I discovered early that evening that the marsh on the south side of Route 126/215 at the primary inlet to Clary Lake which had been recently flooded by beavers was draining into Clary Lake. The picture at left shows the inlet of the culvert well plugged by sticks and mud on Thursday afternoon with the water level less than a foot from the top of the culvert. Sometime early Saturday morning someone, most likely a Town of Jefferson work crew, brought an excavator to the site and dredged out the blockage. Continue reading →

01 August 2015: Clary Lake Association Annual Meeting today!

I should have posted this a few days ago but better late than never: the Clary Lake Association’s Annual Meeting is today at 2:00 PM at the home of Ellis Percy and Joanne Tribby at 101 Old Madden Road in Jefferson. The weather looks like it will be hot, but dry. We have a very full agenda and would like to start on time, so if you haven’t already joined the Association or renewed your membership, please come early to avoid the rush. Also, there will be a potluck supper after the meeting so bring something to share, or just bring your appetite.

Here’s Page 1 of the agenda:

2015 Annual Meeting Agenda PAGE 1

If you have any questions feel free to call George Fergusson (549-5991) or Ellis Percy (549-7448). Hope to see you there!

29 July 2015: North Shore Clary Lake Video

Published: 29 July 2015

The north shore of Clary Lake in the vicinity of Duncan Road has been severely impacted by the ongoing water level crisis. Now, with the lake level 63″ below the top of the dam, the water has receded over 100′ from where it would normally be this time of year. How long will this be allowed to continue?

28 July 2015: Duncan road lake shore owners severely impacted by low water

Duncan Road, north shore. The water level in this picture was 63″ below the top of the dam. Photograph by George Fergusson 28 July 2015

Everyone around the lake has been impacted by the Clary Lake water level crisis to some extent, some more than others depending on the nature of their shoreline. However, it is hard to believe the conditions the people over by Duncan Road on the north shore of the lake have been putting up with going on 4 years now. I had been over that way in my boat a few times earlier this year, but I never got too close to shore because of shallow water. I knew that the lake had receded quite a bit, but I really was not prepared for what I found today when I went over to look around. I drove over, parked, and walked around for almost an hour, taking pictures. It was a beautiful day, high summer in Maine, and not a soul to be seen. Nobody was there. No kids. No dogs. Nobody. And no wonder: it’s not a place anyone wants to hang out any more. Continue reading →

21 July 2015: Lake level reaches a new high in lows

I don’t need to tell anyone that the lake level is low, that much is obvious. However the lake is now lower than anyone has seen it in more than 54 years judging from a picture taken back in the summer of 1961, and that seems like something worth telling people about. On April 21, 2012 the lake fell to a then-record low of -62.53″ but as of the other day, the lake level had fallen even lower than that, to -62.64″ below the top of the dam, where it sits now. I went over to the State boat launch with my camera to take yet another picture of how useless it is and found the water level had fallen off the end of the ramp. Continue reading →

18 July 2015: A few new historical photographs

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Captioned on back, “Harold and me. Henry Clary’s cottage, Clary Lake”. This is Harold and Inez Carpenter, my great uncle and aunt. Inez was my Great Aunt Belle Douglas’s sister. Submitted by Steve Giampetruzzi. Click for a larger version.

Steven Giampetruzzi has uploaded two pictures to the site of historical interest, they are undated but appear to date from the early part of the last century, sometime after 1910. One photo in particular has piqued my curiosity, it shows what is described as “Henry Clary’s cottage, Clary Lake” (at left). Does anyone know where this might have been located? Henry Clary lived and owned property in Jefferson but I was unaware also had a place on Clary. I would very much like to know where this place was located. Continue reading →

18 July 2015: Annual Maine Audubon Loon Count nets 1 Loon, 1 new rock

The Annual Maine Audubon Loon Count was today. The loon count takes place for 1/2 hour between 7 am and 7:30 am on the third Saturday of July. On this day people all over the state hit their lakes in kayaks, canoes, and motor boats to count the number of Loons on the water. This year only 1 loon was seen on Clary Lake though 3 to 4 adults have been seen from time to time this spring. Needless to say, there are no nesting loons or baby loons this year. Mary and Ernie Shaw have been doing the loon count for quite a few years now. Mary will be giving a full report at the upcoming Annual Meeting.

Usually Mary and Ernie have their 16′ boat in the water, and they can usually be seen most pleasant evenings taking a slow and leisurely sunset cruise around the lake but this year there wasn’t enough water at the State boat ramp for them to launch their boat. For that matter there isn’t enough water on their shoreline for them to put in their dock either, so to conduct today’s loon count they asked me to take them around in my 14′ boat. During the loon count I managed to find a new rock on the north side of the lake off the point at the end of Duncan Road, in an area that I thought was plenty deep enough, and free of hazards. I was wrong. There are 2 buoys off the point marking shallow water ledges, and I had given them what I thought was a sufficiently wide berth. Fortunately I was not going too fast and my motor was not locked down so no serious damage was done, but my propeller got bent. I will have to pull it and file and reshape it before heading out again.

08 July 2015: Lake shore owners concerned about invasive aquatic plants [UPDATED]

Last week I noticed some large and extensive mats of a green pond weed over by my shoreline in about 2′-3′ of water, thick enough to foul my trolling motor and bring my boat to a halt. I collected a sample and identified it as Elodea or American water weed (or Common Pond Weed). I was therefore not particularly surprised when Thomas Gillette showed up at my house yesterday with a shopping bag full of this plant, concerned that Clary Lake might have an invasive plant infestation underway. Thomas told me that Butch Duncan had brought it to him, saying that there were thick mats of it over in the cove on the north side of the lake by Duncan Road.

I reassured Thomas that this was not an invasive species. We’ve had this plant growing in Clary Lake forever but it’s always remained under control. You’d see a few pieces of it wash ashore from time to time or you might see patches of it up in the channel. Recently however, conditions around the lake have become quite conducive to this plant’s rapid growth in areas where it was not found before. Elodea is not a recognized invasive plant species but under the right conditions it can and does become a nuisance, clogging shallow water areas with thick mats of vegetation. Elodea likes nutrient-rich water down to several meters (5′-7′) in depth, plenty of sunlight, water temperatures between 10° C and 25° C and a soft, silty or muddy bottom where it’s thin wiry roots can get a good foot hold. You won’t find Elodea on a rocky or gravel bottom. With the water level down 5′ and 50% of the volume of the lake gone, conditions around Clary Lake are near perfect for this plant’s growth to explode: the reduced lake volume increases the concentration of nutrients in the water and the lowered lake level allows sunlight to reach down to silty/muddy areas that would normally be under 7′ to 10′ of water where Elodea wouldn’t normally be found, or be able to survive. Now our shallow water areas are a perfect habitat for Elodea.

Continue reading →

June 2015 Water Level Chart archived

6 waterlevelchart_June2015 I’ve archived the June 2015 water level chart. The lake level remained in a fairly tight range for the whole month, fluctuating only ± 3.7″ and ending up the month a little off its lows at -57.36″ below the top of the dam. It fell to 62″ below the top of the dam on June 20th, only the second time in 4 years it has gotten that low. In comparison, during the month of May the lake level fell precipitously at over 1″ per day, for the entire month. Despite the above average amount of rain we received in June (5.46″ compared to an average of 0nly 3.54″) the lake level remained largely unaffected because so much of the precipitation soaked into the ground rather than running off into the lake. As a result, the runoff multiplier was closer to 1X to 1.5X rather than the normal 4X multiplier. May’s rainfall total was so far below average (only 0.60″ compared to an average of 3.7″) that even with all the rain we received in June, we’re still several inches below normal.

The state boat launch remains largely unusable except for carry-in traffic and small boats if you’re able to manhandle them on and off their trailers and are willing to drag them across the rocks and shallows to get to and from deeper water; not many people are. I’ve seen a number of vehicles pull into the launch area with boats on trailers only to leave after seeing exposed rocks off the end of the ramp. Can’t blame them. As a result, boat traffic on Clary Lake this summer is noticeably below normal. Anyone who does manage to get their boat launched has to contend with shallow water and rocks where you least expect them. Only a few of the hazards are marked, leaving vast areas too shallow for safe boating to surprise the unfamiliar boater.

There is ample evidence around the lake of the impact of the ongoing severely low lake levels besides an unusable boat launch, and rocks sticking out of the water. As a result of fluctuating water levels, the loons that call Clary Lake home have not even bothered to try nesting this year, or last. Their last successful nesting attempt was back in 2008. Even more damaging to the ecosystem is the loss of 350+ acres of sensitive, high-value wetlands and the shallow-water littoral zone around the edge of the lake so important for lake health and for bird, fish, and animal habitat. Gone.

30 June 2015: Kelley’s appeal of Petition for Release Dismissal to BEP rejected

Paul Kelley standing in front of the Clary Lake dam. Photograph by George Fergusson, 8 August 2007

You will recall that last May the Maine Department of Environmental Protection returned Pleasant Pond Mill LLC’s (PPM) Petition for Release from Dam Ownership or Water Level Maintenance (see 18 May 2015 news post) citing various reasons including questions of right, title and interest in the Clary Lake dam property resulting from provocative statements made by Mr. Kelley in mediation, and the August 18, 2015 dissolution and subsequent March 26, 2015 cancellation of PPM as a Maine corporate entity. The Clary Lake Association (CLA) had recommended such action in a legal brief filed with DEP on April 7th by their attorney, Mr. Ronald Kreisman of Portland. At that time it was expected that Mr. Kelley would appeal the Department action. On June 15, 2015 Mr. Kelley did just that, filing an appeal (along with a request for a public hearing) with the Board of Environmental Protection (BEP). However, in a letter dated June 24, 2015, the chairman of the BEP, James W. Parker, informed Mr. Kelley’s that the Department’s return of PPM’s petition for release of dam ownership or water level maintenance was a “procedural action” taken by the Department during processing of the petition and did not constitute final agency action and as such is not subject to appeal to, or review by, the BEP. The Board chairman went on to say that the owner of the Clary Lake dam “may elect to document its ownership and submit (or re-submit, as the case may be) a petition pursuant to 38 M.R.S.A. § 901(1) for consideration on the merits.“

Continue reading →

Summer 2015 Newsletter is in the mail

The Clary Lake Association’s Summer 2015 Newsletter is in the mail. It went out a little later than intended, we’d hoped to get it mailed towards the end of May rather than the end of June but better late than never I always say. The newsletter is sent to all Clary Lake shore owners regardless of whether they’re Association members or not. We added an extra page to this year’s newsletter to accommodate a larger than usual Clary Lake water level order update, necessary because of how much has transpired this past year. Also for the first time since I’ve been doing the newsletter that we have sold some advertising in an effort to defray production costs.

A few items that normally appear in our newsletters didn’t make it into this issue due to space constraints. These include information about the annual Maine Audubon Loon Count and a water quality update. This year’s loon count will take place on Saturday July 19th for 1/2 hour between 7:00 am and 7:30 am. Mary and Ernie Shaw will be doing the count though if the lake level doesn’t rise enough for them to launch their boat in the next few weeks they may be using my boat to do it. For up-to-date information about the water quality of Clary Lake, check out the Clary Lake Water Monitoring Data page which is updated roughly every 2 weeks during the boating season.

Summer 2015 Newsletter

The newsletter is sent to all Clary Lake shore owners, not just Association members. Our mailing list currently consists of about 140 names including some interested parties who do not own property around Clary Lake. If you’d like to be on our mailing list, send an email to info@clarylake.org and include at least your name and address and preferably also a phone number and email address.

19 June 2015: New Legislation to affect people considering a water level petition

DEP Commissioner Patricia Aho testifying before the Environment and Natural Resource committee. I was there for a work session on LD 1244, “An Act To Amend Environmental Permitting Standards”; the Commissioner was actually testifying on a different bill at the time, she did not comment on LD 1244. Photograph by George Fergusson, 29 April 2015

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection introduced proposed legislation this past spring entitled “An Act To Amend Environmental Permitting Standards.” The proposed legislation, designated LD 1244 and sponsored by Republican Senator Thomas Saviello, was turned over to the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) of which he is co-Chair, on Apr 7, 2015. The main thrust of the legislation had to do with changes to the application and permitting process for wind power and micro hydro projects, but sections 10 and 11, tacked onto the end of the bill, were proposed changes to Title 38 MRSA §840 otherwise known as the Water Level Law. This is the law that governs the water level petition process including a requirement for an adjudicatory hearing. This Maine Legislature Information Page has links to everything pertaining to LD 1244.

I first became aware of the bill on April 24th, a few weeks after it was introduced, and I developed an immediate interest. I didn’t initially feel the need to bring it up on this site because the proposed changes to the law would not affect the Clary Lake water level order, which is already issued, though not yet enforced. However I believed the changes would have a profound impact on other parties contemplating their own water level petitions and so decided to take a stand on the issue. Though I missed the initial work group session where the ENR Committee solicited public testimony, I did attend a subsequent work group session, submitted written comments on behalf of the Clary Lake Association, and was given a brief opportunity to speak on the bill despite the time for public testimony having already passed. I am grateful to both chairs of the committee, Senator Saviello and Representative Welsh, for this opportunity. I believe the Committee heard what I had to say.

The changes requested by the Department included requiring mandatory mediation before any member of the public could file a petition, which I actually thought was a fine idea, but I felt the language was way too loose and needed to be tightened up. In addition, the Department wanted to raise the application fee to cover the actual costs of conducting an adjudicatory hearing. The original language of Section 11 as initially proposed is as follows: Continue reading →

17 June 2015: State Boat Launch unusable, still

The State boat launch with the water level 61″ below the top of the dam. The water has receded to the end of the ramp and there’s only a foot of water off the end of it, and exposed rocks 25′ out beyond it. Good luck trying to launch a boat. Photograph by George Fergusson 17 June 2015

The lake has fallen to 61″ below the top of the dam, a level we’ve seen only 3 other times in the last 4 years. As I was updating the water level chart this afternoon I noted that the level had reached the elevation of the end of the boat launch and so I decided to go over and take a picture. Even though I knew what I was going to find because I’ve seen it before, it was still surprising, and sad, seeing the ramp fully exposed like this. It was a beautiful day on Clary Lake with loads of sun and a light breeze, but there was nobody at the launch, no kids swimming, and no parked boat trailers. This was not surprising. The water level had indeed fallen to the end of the ramp; that condition and the exposed rocks beyond the end of it would no doubt discourage anyone from even trying to launch a boat here, or go swimming for that matter. The launch was designed to have a minimum of 2.3′ of water over the foot of the ramp and believe me, you need all of that to launch a boat. I’ve seen people struggle to get their boats on and off trailers when there wasn’t enough water to float them off, and I’ve done it myself. I’ve seen people pull in, survey the situation, and leave without attempting to launch their boat. And then I’ve see this.

I was talking this morning with someone at the store and the age-old question of how low can the lake fall came up. The lake level is currently at -61″ and falling about 1/4″ per day; Without rain, I think it can fall another couple of inches. You can’t get a kayak or canoe into the channel now, if you can even find it. So the lake is about bottomed out. I wrote about this back on 03 October 2014.

13 June 2015: Using the Clary Lake depth map on the lake

When I first posted about the Clary Lake Depth Map last week I mentioned that you could use it with a GPS in real time on a tablet or smartphone. I should have said “in principle” because at the time I actually hadn’t tried it yet… A couple of people asked me about this and I had to tell them that I was still working on it. Well now I have tried it, and I thought I ought to post something more about it. It turns out it DOES work (I knew it!) but it did take a little doing to get it working well out on the lake without an internet connection.

The tricks includ saving the map for “offline use” (see Google Maps “tips and tricks” for how to do this) turning off automatic screen rotation so the app doesn’t try to reload the map, not trying to zoom too much (people with a 3G or 4G data plan from their service provider and who can access the internet anywhere won’t have these issues). Above is a screenshot from my Nexus tablet I took the other day showing the Clary Lake depth map overlaid on Google Maps with GPS positioning enabled (the blue dot with the arrow head and ring around it shows where I was at the time, on my deck). As you move around the lake, the GPS updates your location shown on the map which makes it easy to locate a rock, ridge, or slope where you’re likely to find fish hanging out. How cool is that? This combines things I enjoy a lot, fishing, computers, and using maps. Now if I could just figure out how to convert the depth map into a format that can be uploaded to a Lowrance Mark IV depth finder, I’d be truly happy. You’d think this would be easy.

If you want to give this a try using your smartphone or tablet, first make sure you have location services enabled then copy and paste the following URL into your browser, and head out onto the lake:

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=zb1eVxqneIkk.kyhM9B_EX4Ks

If you try this let me know how you make out. Remember to subtract the current lake level (in feet, presently about 5′) from the depths shown on the map. This will also give you a good idea of areas around the lake to avoid due to lack of water.