Protecting Sebec Lake: Foxcroft Academy and lake association join forces

Everyone understands that Sebec Lake is a major asset to the Piscataquis region, a source of year-round recreation

for thousands and a key contributor to the economy of surrounding villages and towns. It is also home to one of the most popular state parks in all of Maine, Peaks-Kenny. For nearly 50 years, the Sebec Lake Association (SLA) has stood guard over the health of the lake, and as a result, Sebec is one of the cleanest lakes in Maine, if not in all of New England.

But now the lake faces a threat unlike any other … invasive plant species, such as Eurasian milfoil and hydrilla.  These plants can take over the lake, destroying habitat, severely limiting access and ruining the resource many count on to provide their livelihood. These plants have arrived in Maine from other states, hitching a ride on any item that may have been in infested waters, from boats, PWCs and canoes to smaller items … water skis, wakeboards and aqua shoes. Belgrade Lakes, a mere two-hour drive from Sebec, is now infested with milfoil, believed to have been brought in on a duck decoy.

Per Roberta Hill, invasive species program director, Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring group, “You can’t really cure a lake once it is infested. Remediation takes tons of money and many, many years. The best defense for any lake is a good offense, and that means having a team in place to monitor the lake, and educate its users to those threats, and how to prevent infestation.”

In late 2013, a training session was held for SLA members to learn how to identify these species, and to understand how they migrate from an infested lake to a pristine one. Early last summer, SLA began an education effort to raise awareness of this threat. At the 2014 SLA annual meeting, an initiative was approved to intensify the association’s effort to protect the lake. That initiative has three components: community education; creation of a lake monitoring program; and establishment of a “rapid response plan” if one of these species is discovered.  

The Sebec Lake Invasive Plant Patrol was established. “The importance of this initiative can’t be understated,” said Brian Woodworth, president of SLA. “The future health of the lake we love is at stake here. Milfoil is essentially on our doorstep. We needed to act, and we are. Rudy Davis (fellow board member) has done a great job pulling this together, but we can’t do this alone. We need dedicated volunteers.”

This spring, SLA reached out to the Foxcroft Academy to determine if there would be interest among faculty and students to collaborate with SLA in this effort.  The response from Foxcroft Academy leadership was immediate and clear. “This is a great project, a very important one. As a camp owner on the lake, I am personally very interested in its success. Count us in,” said Head of School Arnold Shorey.  

Per Brian Krause of the science/math department, “After Rudy reached out to us, many of our students have volunteered to join this effort. They’re excited to help protect the lake, and extend their classroom education to the real world. It’s a great opportunity for them to give back to the community. I’m looking forward to it myself.”   

SLA and Foxcroft Academy intend this collaboration to be ongoing year after year. “So many of our students enjoy the lake … it’s important that we contribute to this effort to protect it”, continued Shorey.

The response from the lake community has been good. “We have a good list of volunteers from the membership.  Camp owners are donating time, equipment and funds beyond their annual membership dues to the effort,” according to Janet Hall, SLA recording secretary.  

The first organizational meeting for the volunteer team will occur the latter half of June. Initial training, both classroom and field, will occur on June 30 and July 1. Shortly thereafter, the team will be on the water, initiating the effort to create a vegetation map of the lake, and working at public launches to further education.  

“Mapping the shoreline of Sebec is a big task, and will take several years to complete. However, it’s critical we learn what is already growing in Sebec and to confirm what we believe … that we are currently free of invasives,” said Davis. No less a task is ongoing education about invasives, and how to prevent accidental entry to the lake. “The education effort is equally as big. We have a good plan that we’ll continually update and adjust. That said, we need the cooperation of a lot of people, a lot of businesses, to be successful.  We’re optimistic … so many people love this lake. I’m expecting most will react as Tim Merrill has … with a ‘how can we help?’ We’re counting on it.”

The Sebec Lake Association is a non-profit organization established in 1971. Its mission is to protect and preserve

the lake and membership is open to all who support that mission. To join SLA, visit www.sebeclakeassoc.com.

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