2021 Lake Champlain STATE of the LAKE and Ecosystem Indicators Report ABOUT THE LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM The Lake Champlain Basin The Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) coordinates and funds efforts that benefit the Lake Champlain Basin’s water quality, fisheries, wetlands, wildlife, recreation, and cultural resources. The program works in partner- ship with federal agencies; state and provincial agencies from New York, QUÉBEC Sutton Québec, and Vermont; local communities; businesses; and citizen groups. Philipsburg These partners lead collaborative actions to address water quality and Richford environmental challenges that cross political boundaries in a multinational watershed. Chazy Saint Albans The LCBP was created by the Lake Champlain Special Designation Act of LAKE Plattsburgh 1990, which named Lake Champlain as a resource of national significance. CHAMPLAIN S N I The LCBP was charged with developing and implementing a comprehen- A T sive and coordinated plan for protecting the Lake Champlain Basin. The NEW YORK N U LCBP works closely with program partners to implement management Keeseville Stowe O Burlington goals outlined in Opportunities for Action: An Evolving Plan for the Future of M CK VERMONT the Lake Champlain Basin. S IN N ONDA E TA ADIR E The Lake Champlain Steering Committee guides the LCBP’s work. Its Lake Placid OUNElizabethtown R Montpelier M G members include staff from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and several other U.S. federal agencies, state and provincial governments in New York, Québec, and Vermont; local governments; and Lake Champlain Port Henry Middlebury r e iv Sea Grant. The chairpersons of the LCBP’s Technical Advisory Committee, R ce en r r w e a v L i t. R Heritage Area Program Advisory Committee, Education and Outreach S 01020 u e i l e QUÉBEC h c Ticonderoga ONTARIO i Miles Advisory Committee, and Citizen Advisory Committees also serve on the R LAKE Steering Committee. CHAMPLAIN NEW YORK VERMONT The LCBP receives funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Rutland the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, and the U.S. National Park Service. NEW HAMPSHIRE NEIWPCC manages the LCBP’s financial, contractual, and human resources Whitehall business operations on behalf of the Lake Champlain Steering Committee. LAKE LCBP staff are employees of NEIWPCC. NEIWPCC is a regional commission GEORGE that helps the states of the Northeast preserve and advance water quality. Visit lcbp.org to learn more. Cover photos: LCBP Introduction ...................................................................... 2 of Contents Table Ecosystem Indicators Scorecard ......................................... 3 State of the Lake Summary ................................................. 4 Clean Water ....................................................................... 6 Drinkable, Fishable, and Swimmable Water .........................................6 Pathogens ...........................................................................................8 Cyanobacteria ................................................................................ 10 Nutrients ..........................................................................................12 Contaminants ...................................................................................16 Healthy Ecosystems.......................................................... 18 Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function ................................................18 Aquatic Invasive Species ...................................................................22 Thriving Communities ..................................................... 27 Community Health ............................................................................27 Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership ...............................29 Informed and Involved Public........................................... 30 Education and Outreach ....................................................................30 Community Action ............................................................................32 Acknowledgments ............................................................ 33 2021 STATE OF THE LAKE 1 ake Champlain is a unique and invaluable and provides context on how pressures from This report also describes several ongoing resource for residents and visitors to our human activities have led us to this point. challenges. The amount of nutrients deliv- Introduction region. Thousands of people rely on the LCBP strives to do this through graphs of ered to the Lake from the Basin each year LLake for sustenance, inspiration, and rejuve- scientific measurements with clear scientific must be reduced to meet water quality goals, nation. The Lake’s tributaries are the lifeblood interpretation and through an Ecosystem and warm weather cyanobacteria blooms of the ecosystem, connecting communities Indicator scorecard, which provides the continue to impact recreation in many parts and habitats in the farthest reaches of the status and long-term trends for several of the Lake. Despite several invasive species watershed to the Lake itself. The Lake Cham- important issues at a glance. interceptions and prevention measures, the plain Basin Program (LCBP) is committed to LCBP is pleased to include a new Ecosys- fishhook waterflea was discovered in the protecting, restoring, and preserving Lake tem Indicator in this report—the first in Lake in 2018. Champlain and its watershed through collab- nearly two decades—to help readers under- As the COVID-19 pandemic changed the orative partnerships and through leveraging stand changes in how often the Lake freezes world in countless ways and severely limited the strength of its communities. over and potential impacts of these warming public engagement in 2020, many outreach LCBP and its partners manage the trends on the Lake’s ecosystem. The report and interpretation programs were postponed Lake Champlain Basin with a “Pressure- also includes several new figures to illustrate or transitioned to virtual platforms. Many State-Response” approach. In this model, changing chloride levels, the relationship of these new approaches to informing and “pressures” represent challenges introduced between phosphorus and nitrogen and involving the public will be lasting and will by human activities, the “state” is science- possible impacts on cyanobacteria (former- shape our future work to protect and restore based evidence for the condition of the ly called “blue-green algae”) blooms, and the health of the Basin. ecosystem, and the “response” is LCBP’s plan access for landlocked Atlantic salmon to LCBP is working with new and existing to protect and restore Lake Champlain and their historical ranges in major rivers of the partners to include, amplify, and translate its watershed. Every three years, the State Basin. A new map in the report highlights messaging to more communities in the Lake of the Lake and Ecosystem Indicators Report conserved lands around the Basin and public Champlain Basin; to encourage projects and documents the state of the Lake’s ecosystem beach locations on the Lake. Public access programs that look beyond traditional out- is now more important than ever, since the reach; and to develop new approaches that COVID-19 pandemic drove people to find will be more inclusive. This collaborative recreation opportunities on conserved lands, approach by all users of the Lake will help P lakes, and public trail systems in new ways. the community to achieve its shared goals RE Many stories shared in this report are for clean water, healthy ecosystems, thriving E S S S encouraging. Fisheries managers are reduc- communities, and an informed and involved N U R O ing the number of lake trout stocked by 33%, public. E P a decision informed by the documented This document is complemented by the S E success of wild lake trout reproduction over State of the Lake website, which contains addi- R several years. Surveys have shown that 60% tional content, a full French translation, and of boaters take precautions to prevent the citations for the scientific literature and tech- spread of invasive species, signaling aware- nical reports that inform the report. Learn ness of individual responsibility in prevent- more at sol.lcbp.org. ing invasive species introduction and spread. New programs are connecting students and STATE adults to the history and heritage of the re- gion and are bringing kids outside to experi- ence and learn about their watershed. 2 LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM ECOSYSTEM INDICATORS by LAKE SEGMENT Introduction MISSISQUOI NORTHEAST MALLETTS MAIN SOUTH BAY ARM* BAY LAKE LAKE Trend Start STATUS TREND STATUS TREND STATUS TREND STATUS TREND STATUS TREND Phosphorus in Lake (p. 13) 1990 ~ ~ ~ ~ Phosphorus from rivers (p. 14) 1991 ~ ~ ~ CLEAN Phosphorus from WWTFs† §(p. 15) 1995 WATER Cyanobacteria blooms (p. 11) 2013 ~ ~ ~ ~ Fish consumption advisories† (p. 7) 2018 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Sea lamprey wounding† (p. 24) 2003 HEALTHY New aquatic invasive species (p. 22) 2018 ECOSYSTEMS Invasive water chestnut coverage (p. 26) 2018 ~ ~ CLIMATE IMPACTS Lake Champlain freeze-over (p. 21) 1906 Trend: Lake surface freezing over less frequently. * Northeast Arm indicator statuses and trends for in-lake phosphorus concentra- § Wastewater treatment facilities tions, tributary phosphorus loading to the Lake, and cyanobacteria blooms do not include data from St. Albans Bay. Some trends may be impacted by year-to-year differences in data collection and reporting. This is especially