The Conservation Commission discussed the status of the Pillings Pond treatment plan to rid it of harmful growths, particularly spiny naiads, being conducted by Water & Wetland, the pond and lake management company the town has contracted.
Annual treatment for the pond began in late August after harmful algae blooms were detected late last June, necessitating a public health advisory, thus halting the ability for Water & Wetland to treat the water.
These blooms are common in the summer season and have caused obstacles for the town in the past as, according to Vice Chair of the Conservation Commission Kirk Mansfield, the last two years have seen treatment halted from public health advisory.
“We keep getting into these messes because the pond keeps getting shut down,” he said. “Do we have any type of contingency plan if this pond is shut down again, because it just seems to be getting worse for all the times it’s getting shut down.”
Such a contingency would be complicated, as Water & Wetland’s permit does not allow them to operate in the pond if there is a public health advisory in place according to Director of Planning & Conservation Emilie Cademartori.
As a result, an overgrowth of the weed presented itself that couldn’t be treated until the advisory was lifted on Aug. 28.
Frustrated locals even took it upon themselves to pull spiny naiad growths by hand, which could actually end up worsening the problem as the plant spreads its seeds through fragmentation.
“Depending on the efficacy of the treatment, whether or not any viable seedstock or cuttings remain, because there was so much growth this year, there’s a chance it could come back worse next year, even though we did a big treatment,” Cademartori said.
She also noted that the severe droughts this summer snuffed out any hopes that the pond’s algae blooms could’ve been flushed out so the advisory could end soon.
Water & Wetland suggested longer term alternatives for containing algae blooms like an alum treatment. However, this would require testing, could be pricey, and might not be effective if they don’t implement boating laws as wake can disrupt the treatment.
As this year’s challenges are similar to past years, so are the proposals from the company. Cademartori did say that she is requesting sampling to be done on the pond to identify what kind of growths it is experiencing.
“If we did sampling and there was a bloom, but it wasn’t a dangerous bloom, then we could keep treating, so that’s where that sampling is important,” she said. “It’s so counterintuitive that you can’t even sample to determine if it’s safe.”
Adding to that sentiment, Conservation Commission Chair Donald Gentile expressed the backwardness of being barred from treating a body of water due to algal bloom, “where the only thing that’s going to improve it is treatment.”
It’s an especially tricky task as these blooms can appear in a 24-hour period and suddenly halt work being done at the pond, meaning that implementing some sort of emergency contingency could be considered that curtails the consistent stalling of crucial treatment for Pillings Pond.
