Leveraging government grants and harnessing the generosity of foundations and families, the Lake George Association has launched a Lake Impact Fund to arrest the decline in the lake’s water quality.
An initiative announced September 11 – the Lake Impact Fund’s first – will award $10,000 grants to as many as 40 owners of property lying within 500 feet of the lake or 100 feet from tributaries who are subject to the Lake George Park Commission’s new mandatory septic inspection program.
According to the LGA, approximately $400,000 will be awarded over a two-year period to repair or replace septic systems which have failed to pass inspections.
“The LGA is focused on ‘Investing for Impact’ to help build sustainable lake protection throughout the Lake George basin,” said Monika LaPlante, LGA Managing Program Director. “With the Lake Impact Fund, we can lower the financial barrier for those who need help most. Right now, that need is highest for residents who must replace their septic systems.”
A $250,000 contribution from the Wright Family Foundation and a $200,000 grant from the Lake Champlain Basin Program will underwrite the costs of the 2024-25 initiative to help replace the septic systems of eligible property owners.
According to Heather Ward, chair of the Wright Family Foundation, she and her fellow trustees have elected to financially support efforts to protect Lake George at least since 2014, when The Fund for Lake George established LG30 to help finance the work of the Jefferson Project, the collaborative effort of RPI, IBM and The Fund for Lake George to make Lake George “the world’s smartest lake.”
“We all have special relationships to the lake,” said Ward, the great-granddaughter of W. Howard Wright, the founder of the Schenectady-based SI Group. “Some of our trustees live here year-round; others grew up on the lake. We have a history of stewardship.”
Rather than donations toward unrestricted purposes, the trustees of the Wright Family Foundation are interested in funding specific projects, Ward noted.
“We were very aware of the threats to Lake George from failing septic systems, so a project to start replacing them was of huge interest to us,” said Ward.
According to Lake George Waterkeeper Chris Navitsky, who began assessing the status of septic systems on Lake George in 2016, “Poorly treated wastewater that enters the lake through faulty septic systems carries harmful bacteria, viruses, and nutrient pollution that can negatively affect human and environmental health.”
Navitsky said excessive nutrients promote algae growth, which in turn can generate cynobacteria, or harmful algal blooms.
Nine nontoxic HABs have been sighted in Lake George since 2020, said Navitsky.
In 2023, the first year of the Lake George Park Commission’s inspection program, 45.6% of the systems passed, 23.2% failed and the remaining systems were found to be substandard in size, improperly located or in need of minor repairs, according to the Lake George Park Commission.
108 systems were inspected between May and August in the program’s second year of existence and of those, approximately 30% were found to be in need of full or partial replacement.
“The results of the inspections, similar to last year’s efforts, show that onsite wastewater systems in the Lake George area have many challenges and often require repairs and even replacement in many cases,” said Dave Wick, the Lake George Park Commission’s executive director.
The costs of replacing septic systems range from $8,000 to $60,000, according to the LGA.
“By easing the community’s financial stressors to upgrade their septic systems, the Lake Impact Fund facilitates long-lasting protection to the water quality of Lake George,” said Chris Navitsky.
To qualify for a grant, the property must lie within the Park Commission’s inspection program area must and have a septic system replacement project underway or completed. The successful applicant, who must offer proof of financial need, will be reimbursed for construction-related expenses. Short-term rental properties are not among those eligible for grants. Information about the grant program may be obtained from the LGA’s website.
Since 2021, qualified homeowners living within 250 feet of Lake George in Warren, Essex and Washington Counties have been eligible for grants through the New York State Septic System Replacement Program. Those grants, which reimburse homeowners up to $10,000 for construction costs, must be applied for through the homeowner’s county of residence.
“Preserving our water quality is vitally important to our economy and quality of life,” said Ethan Gaddy, Warren County Planner.
