Lees Pond Association Newsletter

Summer 2014
Great News!
We have a pair of loons residing
on Lees Pond. They appear to
have taken up permanent resi-
dency. Please respect them. Do
not feed waterfowl. Do not mo-
tor around them or in any way
scare them of. We love having a
pair of loons and hope to see
them nestng next spring.
htp://www.loon.org/loon-
center-markus-sanctuary.php
NEWS FROM OUR ANNUAL MEETINGJULY 2014

I am sad to report our key indicator, total phosphorus, values contn-
ue to creep up ever so slowly on our pond. We need to contnue to
educate the pond residents in ways to maintain/improve the water
quality on Lees Pond. At our annual meetng we had a speaker share
with us ways to improve our water quality. This program generated
interest.

As a result of the program many residents indicated interest in reduc-
ing storm water runof. With the help of NH Lakes Associaton. Lees
Pond Associaton had previously evaluated 3 propertes on the pond.
We currently have two projects underway that will help improve wa-
ter quality by reducing rainwater runof.

Although this is strictly a voluntary program we would encourage
other property owners to have their waterfronts evaluated and con-
sider improvements. In most cases the solutons are not expensive
and in fact can beautfy the property. We are hoping all property
owners will decide to evaluate their shorelines and consider improve-
ments. Every litle bit helps! (see atached URL for additonal infor-
maton)
htp://des.nh.gov/organizaton/commissioner/pip/publicatons/wd/
documents/nhdes-wd-10-8.pdf
WHERE DOES EXCESS
PHOSPHORUS COME
FROM?

Sources of phosphorus and
how excessive phosphorus
loading can negatvely impact
the ecology and the recreaton-
al, economic and ecological
value of lakes and ponds in-
clude:

Septc system efuent
Animal waste
Sediment and non-source
pollutants from lakefront
propertes along the shore
Eroding roadways and con-
structon sites
Natural wetlands
htp://leespondassociaton.weebly.com/
SHORELINES
Click on links to browse for
more information
Why are Shorelines Im-
portant?
Climate Vulnerabilities of
Shorelines
Wildlife of Shorelines
Stewardship Guidelines for
Shorelines
Other Resoureces for Shore-
Key Points to Consider:

The limitng nutrient in NH Lakes and Ponds is excessive phosphorus. This can
lead to increased plant and algal growth over tme. We learned the need to
contnually educate all watershed residents about management practces that
can be implemented to minimize phosphorus loading of surface waters.

Rainfall causes sediment-laden storm water runof to fow into surface waters,
thus increasing turbidity and decreasing clarity.

It is important to stabilize pond shorelines, disturbed soils within the water-
shed, and especially dirt roads, lawns and paths located immediately adjacent
to the edge of the pond

Nonnatve plants and materials should not be added to the waters edge with-
out permits from NHDES.
SHORELINES ARE IMPORTANT TO THE
HEALTH OF OUR POND
The shorelines of lakes, ponds, and rivers are valuable real estate in New
Hampshire, but their importance as wildlife habitat is also significant. The
qualities that make shorelines attractive to wildlife may be very different
from what makes them attractive for boating and swimming.
Shorelines with extensive, mature forests along the shore are critical yet
rare habitats in New Hampshire. High quality shorelines are usually found
in places undisturbed by buildings, roads, docks, lawns, or heavy recrea-
tional activity. At the waters edge, native aquatic vegetation (plants
growing in or under the water), submerged rocks and boulders, and dead
trees that have fallen in the water are all features of high quality shore-
line habitat. These habitat features become less common as housing den-
sity increases around lakes, ponds or rivers.
Underwater vegetation is particularly valuable as cover for wildlife, espe-
cially in larger lakes and ponds where wave action or deep water limits
the amount of shoreline where plants can grow. Look for plants whose
foliage appears to float at the surface or under the water, such as pond
lilies, pondweeds, coontail, bladderwort, and native milfoils.
The best shoreline habitat has large areas of diverse underwater vegeta-
tion such as coontail and bladderwort mixed with aquatic plants such as
pickerelweed and yellow pond lily that grow in scattered stands. When
these features are found near deep water, shoreline wetlands, and upland
forests, the shoreline habitat becomes a productive hunting ground for
great blue and green heron, otter, mink, and larger fish such as eastern
chain pickerel and yellow perch. Quoted from Sewardship Series publica-
tion SHORLINES: Habitat Series published by UNH Cooperative Extension
Services
http://extension.unh.edu/Shorelines
TOTAL PHOSPHORUS
MEASUREMENTS OVER THE
YEARS


Depth meas-
urements
2011
ave
2012
ave
2013
ave
2014
June
I M 8.9 10 13 14
5M 9.2 11 13 15
8M 19.3 18 22 26
inlet 14.7 16 12 17
outlet 9.3 9 9 25
Ideal <10
ug/L



ave 10.1-20 ug/L

less desirable 20.1-40
ug/L

excessive >40 ug/L


Lees Pond Associaton ask your help in contnuing to improve our pond
shorelines. We would be happy to talk to you about this problem/
concern. If there is interest, we might hire a consultant to survey and
suggest solutons to our shoreline.
Bev Nelson, President Lees Pond (phone # 603-253-4274)
bjnelson61@roadrunner.com