Lake George is among the clearest and cleanest large lakes in the World. Over 90% of the watershed remains as natural forestland with half of that protected as forever-wild Forest Preserve. And, Lake George serves as the primary source of drinking water for surrounding communities and residents. 

Like many lakes, Lake George has been impacted by invasive Eurasian milfoil. First discovered in 1986, it has been managed over the past 30 years at a cost of over $5 million. To date hand-harvesting and matting have been used to control the milfoil, in 2020 186,590 pounds (about 93 tons) of milfoil was removed from Lake George.

The milfoil continues to grow in Lake George and in an effort to eliminate the dense milfoil beds, the Lake George Park Commission, in charge of managing the lake wanted to try aquatic herbicides and received a permit to do so. However, the Lake George Association and a large number of the public raised objections to the use of herbicides in their beloved Lake George.

The Lake George Association felt  there were too many unknowns about its impact on nontarget species, to native plants, animals, and even to human health for those people who still use the lake for their drinking water. The association sued to stop the use of the aquatic herbicide use and a state Supreme Court judge ruled in favor of the herbicide treatment.

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The APA conducted monitoring and said the herbicide eliminated all traces of Eurasian Watermilfoil and found no significant impact on other plants, or degradation in wetlands. However, not every group tasked with caring for Lake George or the Adirondacks is convinced about ProcellaCOR EC yet.  There isn’t enough long-term evidence of the herbicide’s safety. Some factors have to be measured over a lot of time.

In some cases, other states have made their own observations about the effectiveness of ProcellaCOR EC and the drawbacks that could manifest. From a document on the herbicide’s use by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources:

“It is important to note that repeated use of herbicides with the same mode of action can lead to herbicide-resistant plants, even in aquatic plants. Certain hybrid Eurasian watermilfoil genotypes have been documented to have reduced sensitivity to aquatic herbicides. In order to reduce the risk of developing resistant genotypes, avoid using the same type of herbicides year after year, and utilize effective, integrated pest management strategies as part of any long-term control program.”

Read More https://www.news10.com/news/north-country/inside-the-herbicide-that-may-see-use-in-lake-george/