By Sarah Opdahl

At the Wednesday, July 9, Candlewood Lake Authority (CLA) meeting, Director of Ecology and Education Dr. Neil Stalter explained that the extensive stream sampling, which is being tested for the first time, is continuing and is “very successful. We’ve got three permanent monitoring stations in the three main streams going into the lake, and then we’re working with GEI and taking samples at the three smaller streams. So far, we have just got the first batch of data, which is really interesting.” In addition, he is gathering monthly water samples which are being routed to UCONN for analysis.  E coli and blue green algae monitoring has  begun, and those tests will continue until after Labor Day.

CLA members learned of ongoing discussions and revisions to a procedure manual regarding best practices for both officer and boating community safety. They have discussed many issues in depth, including an emphasis on boating laws for driving under the influence.

Marine Patrol Chief Mr. Nick Mellas was happy to report that the season is moving along smoothly. The Danbury fireworks were a busy time for all patrol officers, who joined a host of Danbury’s police and emergency services personnel. Overall, he shared, “The islands have been super busy, and we’ve been dealing with noise complaints as best we can.” There were three minor accidents so far and a few vessel tows.

Mellas was glad to relay the news that the patrol staff have never missed a shift, though one officer had just resigned at the time of the meeting because he was hired for a  “better part-time job,” saying, “I asked him to send in a resignation letter so that would be on file, and he’s going to try and work the rest of the shifts in August, so he’ll be missed, but we will carry on.”

Equipment-wise, “the boats are running great… the software is running great [and] the tablets are running well,” Mellas explained. He went on, “Connectivity is outstanding and we’re gathering a robust database. So that’s really good. Once we put one name in, it pops up if it’s a repeat customer, and we talked to that person before, that is running really well.” In other equipment news, it was noted that the third silver ship is nearing completion. Executive Director Mr. Mark Howarth said, “no promises on the delivery date, but I’m glad the windows are in” as there was a delay in securing those. The truck that the CLA recently purchased will also be ready later in July. And, there are quotes being attained on a roof replacement for the Sherman CLA facility.

Treasurer Mr. Will Meikle shared, “we finished our fiscal year on June 30….that will take a few more weeks to complete, but I wanted to give you a status of where we are as we sit here today. We ended the year with a $30,000 surplus, which was great.” There was some belt tightening mid-year in reaction to unanticipated expenditures, which helped greatly to right the finances. Meikle added, “I really want to thank the entire organization for buckling up, because we were getting a little over our skis through the first half of the year, and then we brought it right back in.” He also expressed gratitude to the community members and businesses who donated throughout the year, which is greatly appreciated.

With the surplus in hand, CLA members approved assigning $15,000 to the next phase of their lake management plan and the remainder will be added to their unassigned fund balance. In addition, as the new fiscal year has begun, Meikle explained, “we have designated $75,000 to be appropriated from the towns and go into the capital fund,” which was also unanimously approved.

Howarth explained that many new videos are in progress that will roll out on the website. Four were recently created on public awareness and three on ecology. They will release them periodically through next spring. He shared that the videos are being noticed by others in the lake management community as being an impressive resource.

An intern has joined the CLA office to complete research on the water being pumped up from the Housatonic into Candlewood Lake, “which we’re obviously very interested in,” Stalter stressed.

The next regular Candlewood Lake Authority meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 13, 7:30 p.m.