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CAROGA TOWN TOPICS
CAROGA TOWN TOPICS
Caroga Town Topics - The Town Directory - 2026
Caroga Town Budget 2025 - Adopted 2025 Budget
Caroga Town Community Survey - Results (2025)
Caroga Comprehensive Plan Info - Comprehensive Plan webpage
Caroga Town Topics -
WaterCraft Program
WaterCraft Program
On June 8 2022 the state implemented a new law requiring that all watercraft be certified as clean or be decontaminated. Area fishermen, jet skiers, kayakers, and motorboats depend on the Town program to inspect and clean their boats. The program operates a boat wash across from the Town Hall from 8 am- 6pm from Memorial Day through Columbus Day to assure our Town decontaminate any boats carrying invasive species. The program also provides a steward to help inspect boats at the West Lake launch.
Additional Information (Canada Lake Conservation Association 2022)
The volume of watercraft using the boat wash increased by 66% over the 2021 season, and it is anticipated that this number will increase even further as the state more stringently enforces the new law. At the same time, usage of the West Lake launch continues to increase. Stewards there now inspect 2,400 watercrafts annually. Most come to the lake from a waterbodies that have invasive species.
The introduction of invasive species into any lake can have massive impacts on recreational viability and property values. For the last two decades the Town has spent almost $100,000 each season to remove milfoil from East Caroga Lake and has been unable to completely remove it. Unless there is some new mitigation technique, the Town should expect that this will be an ongoing drain on its financial resources. The old adage that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of a cure" is certainly true in this case. The 40% cut of $2,500 in the Lake Steward Program called for in the Projected Budget would represent less than 3% of the nearly $100,000 dedicated to the East Caroga Lake WEED program. It would be devastating if similar problems occurred in lakes like the Stoner Lakes, Pine Lake, West Lake, Green Lake, or Canada Lake. The boat wash and inspection programs are a cost-effective approach to preventing the spread of invasive species.
The Canada Lakes Conservation Association has worked closely with the Town to keep the program costs low by obtaining grants to pay for the equipment, facilities, and much of the operational cost over the past 6 years (the last grant ended in March of 2022). We will continue to help the Town pursue additional funding going forward. However, we depend on support from the Town to make sure the program continues to be effective in 2023 and beyond!
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