According to Dave Wick, the Lake George Park Commission’s executive director, “The Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District is the primary driver of proactive, on-the-ground conservation work in this county.”
Its work complements the land use regulations adopted by municipalities and state agencies, as well as the rules regulating the treatment of stormwater, the protection of stream banks, the control of erosion, the restrictions on fertilizers and the inspection of septic systems that have been promulgated by the Lake George Park Commission.
That regulatory regime “makes Lake George one of the most protected waterbodies in the Eastern U.S,” said Wick.
But, adds Wick, “to truly address the existing threats to Lake George, we must also take proactive actions.”
That’s why, in 2023, the Lake George Park Commission agreed to finance WCSWCD projects to prevent urban runoff and its pollutants from reaching Lake George.
Last week, staff from WCSWCD and Lake George Village’s Department of Public Works could be seen on Montcalm Street overseeing one such project.
When completed, approximately three hundred feet of new environmentally advanced porous pavement will be added to Lake George Village’s sloping sidewalks, infiltrating stormwater that would otherwise be conveyed toward the lake.
According to Keith Lanfear, the village’s Superintendent of Public Works, Lake George’s sidewalks can act as vectors for stormwater from surrounding streets, driveways, roofs and other hard surfaces – including, in some cases, the Adirondack Northway.
“This location in particular generated problems; water was just being flushed down the sidewalk. We thought it would be the perfect place to apply this technology,” said Lanfear.
Rather than generating storm water, the new sidewalk will manage it.
“By taking out the impervious sidewalk and replacing it with a porous one, you’re no longer creating stormwater,” said the WCSWCD’s Nick Rowell. “And with a porous sidewalk, you’re also able to reduce the use of the salt to de-ice them in the winter. We don’t often get stormwater management projects with a salt-reduction aspect.”
According to Rowell, porous pavements require less salt, itself a harmful pollutant, because they freeze less frequently, if at all.
“They have their own, intrinsic insulation systems that keep them warm,” said Rowell. “As long as the sun comes out, the ice and snow will start to melt into the pavement. The water doesn’t puddle and freeze.”
The same technology has been used on Beach Road and on a WCSWCD-funded sidewalk on Lake George Village’s Schuyler Street. The porous pavements are cleaned on a recurring basis.
According to the Park Commission’s Randy Rath, porous concrete or asphalt can fill with dirt and debris, interfering with the filtration of storm water and reducing the effectiveness of the materials. But if properly and regularly maintained, the pavements function as intended and do not require time-consuming deep cleanings.
Other WCSWCD projects funded by the Lake George Park Commission include streambank protection and the mapping and inspection of outfalls – the places where stormwater is funneled to the lake through pipes, culverts and ditches – throughout the Lake George basin. More projects are in the planning stages, said Rowell.
At its July, 2024 meeting, the Lake George Park Commission approved a proposal from the WCSWCD to continue executing water quality protection projects at least through 2025.
