There Is Hope For Lake Neatahwanta Getting The Right People Around The Table

For more than 30 years, Lake Neatahwanta in Fulton, New York, has been closed to swimming because of poor water quality and excessive algal growth. As we’re all familiar, the many efforts to restore the lake over the years have brought more frustration than results. Today, it’s probably easier to find someone who knows the lake as a place to avoid than someone who remembers it as a place to swim.

Lake Neatahwanta has a long history of efforts to improve its water quality. The lake was first closed to swimming in 1988 after high levels of E. coli were detected, and the addition of blue-green algae and potential toxins have kept it closed ever since. Over the years, there have been numerous studies, agricultural conservation projects, dredging efforts and proposals for new treatment technologies. But the lake’s problems have proven stubborn.

Hope of restoring the lake was never truly lost, but over the years, people got used to the idea that every new proposal would come with a new reason why it couldn’t be done. That’s why the news that the City of Fulton was selected for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Recreation Economy for Rural Communities program was the spark we needed to reignite revitalization efforts. The program is designed to help communities turn recreational assets into economic opportunities, and Lake Neatahwanta is one of those assets.

With that opportunity in front of us, I thought it was important to bring the people who know and care about Lake Neatahwanta to the same table. This week, I hosted a meeting with local, county, state and federal stakeholders to discuss past and current challenges, and most importantly, talk about what might be possible going forward.

We had representatives from the City of Fulton and Town of Granby, Oswego County, Sen. Ryan’s office, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the EPA, the National Park Service and SUNY ESF, along with local residents and others who have spent years working on or studying the lake. Thank you to all who attended and participated in a robust conversation.

I especially want to thank the DEC for its participation. Six members of the department’s staff attended, including water-quality specialists who were able to provide valuable input.

I do not want to raise expectations before there is a clear, workable path forward. But we now have local, state and federal partners who understand the challenges, people with firsthand knowledge of the lake and experts who can help us determine what options are actually feasible all on the same page.

One of the ideas that came out of the meeting was the formation of a lake association that could help bring interested residents and stakeholders together and keep the effort moving locally. That will ultimately be a decision for the community, but the interest is there. Just as importantly, this meeting connected people who may not have had a direct line to one another before.

That is why I believe this week’s meeting was worthwhile.

Anyone who has spent time around Lake Neatahwanta knows what a beautiful natural resource it is. It has the potential to be an asset for residents, recreation and tourism, but the water-quality challenges have prevented people from fully enjoying it for far too long. After decades of studies, projects and setbacks, there is no shortage of frustration surrounding Lake Neatahwanta. But there is also no shortage of people who want to see something done. This week, we got many of those people around the same table. Now, the work is to figure out where we go from here.

If you have any questions or comments on this or any other state issue, or if you would like to be added to my mailing list or receive my newsletter, please contact my office. My office can be reached by mail at 19 Canalview Mall, Fulton, NY 13069 and by email at [email protected]. You may also find me, Assemblyman Will Barclay, on Facebook or X at @WillABarclay.