NEWPORT, A petition to designate Lake Memphremagog a “lake in crisis” has been rejected by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. Secretary Julie Moore said the decision was based on a lack of evidence that property values have declined due to water quality issues.
State law requires three conditions for the designation: the lake must be listed as impaired, its condition must pose a potential threat to public health or the environment, and a municipality in the lake’s watershed must have reduced property valuations because of the lake’s condition. Moore said the legislature set a high bar when it created the designation.
Peggy Stevens, speaking for the group Don’t Undermine Memphremagog’s Purity (DUMP), which submitted the petition, called the decision disappointing but not surprising. “The fatal flaw is in the legislation, not in the Secretary’s decision,” Stevens said. “Until the law is changed to eliminate the clause relating to property values, the reality is that property values will take precedence over risk to public health and risk to the environment and natural resources.”
DUMP’s concerns include cancerous lesions in brown bullhead fish in South Bay and Hospital Cove, recurring toxic cyanobacteria blooms, and recent findings of measurable PFAS levels in waters in Magog and Sherbrooke, Quebec. The group’s petition gathered 3,800 signatures.
Moore said the agency remains committed to restoring and sustaining the lake. She has proposed a meeting with DUMP and other stakeholders to discuss challenges and future actions.
Photo: AP Vibes via Pexels. Photo is illustrative and not from the scene.
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