December 10 Public Hearing on Petition to Prohibit Wake Sports on Shadow Lake
To: Shadow Lake Association Members, Friends and Neighbors of the Town of Glover
TIME SENSITIVE:
Now is the time to help support the Town of Glover, and Shadow Lake Association’s petition to the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) to prohibit wake sports on Shadow Lake.
WE NEED PEOPLE TO SPEAK (VIRTUALLY OR IN PERSON) AT THE DECEMBER 10th PUBLIC HEARING AND TO WRITE IN SUPPORT OF THE PETITION. The hearing will be held on Dec 10, 2024 at The Gateway Center in Newport, VT. If you are unable to attend the hearing in person, we encourage you to attend virtually using Microsoft Teams or by phone. (Microsoft Teams works very much like Zoom.) Up to date information about where we are on the agenda and how to access the meeting remotely is available at: https://dec.vermont.gov/watershed/lakes-ponds/lakes-and-ponds-rulemaking/121024meeting
The purpose of this hearing is to solicit public input on petitions submitted by 10 of the 30 lakes and ponds where wake sports are now permitted under the rules the ANR adopted last spring. Each lake will have.10 minutes to present an overview of the petition, followed by 20 minutes of comments from the public. Each speaker will be limited to 2 minutes. Time will be strictly enforced.
Speakers: You may speak in person OR virtually, but you must sign up ahead of time. Below is the link to sign up for the meeting on Dec 10: https://dec.vermont.gov/watershed/lakes-ponds/lakes-and-ponds-rulemaking/121024meeting
This link should be active by noon on Tuesday, November 26 — but we suggest you check a day or two ahead in case it is activated before then. Please sign up as soon as possible so we can be sure to fill our time with speakers in support of our petition.
Practice reading your comments aloud to be certain you are within the 2 minute time limit. Choose one or two issues that are most important to you. A copy of your statement, should be sent to the ANR (see Written Comments next) with a copy to Shadow Lake Association for the record to:
Jenifer Andrews
Written Comments: The deadline for written comments is 4:30 pm, December 23. Email your comments to anr.wsmdlakes@vermont.gov and include the words “wakesports” and “Shadow” in the subject line. Please be certain to send a copy of your comments to Shadow Lake Association for the record to:
Jenifer Andrews at
Jeniferbandrews@gmail.com
The ANR has indicated that all comments made virtually, in person and written will be given the same weight.
Focus of Your Oral and Written Comments:
•Aquatic Invasive Species- we have been declared milfoil free- ballasts from Wake Boats cannot be emptied and will transport AIS
•Shadow’s compromised dam cannot take pressure from oversized wake boat waves
•Shoreline damage due to 2 foot water drawdown to take pressure off dam
•Public Safety- We have a public beach with no lifeguard, “normal use” vessels will not be able to use lake when wake boats are in wake mode, Shadow hosts over 210 camps with visitors, families and children, the lake is one of the two smallest lakes permitted for wake boats-too small for safe wake boat usage
Emphasize the many reasons why SHADOW is different from other lakes. You may want to take a look at our petition WHICH CAN BE FOUND ON THE DEC’S “LAKES AND PONDS RULEMAKING “WEBSITE: https://dec.vermont.gov/watershed/lakes-ponds/lakes-and-ponds-rulemaking
Explain why protecting SHADOW is so important to you and your family.
In submitting this petition to the ANR, Shadow Lake Association has done all it can to build a solid case why wake sports should be prohibited on Shadow Lake.
Now it’s your turn. We need you to share your concerns about the safety of other people who enjoy the lake, how wake sports conflict with virtually every other activity that takes place on the water, how aquatic invasive species carried in ballast tanks threaten our water quality and how the dam drawdown has negatively impacted our shoreline.
Please feel free to share this communication with family, friends, and neighbors. And please accept our apologies if you receive this communication more than once. In trying to reach as many people as possible, occasional duplication is inevitable.
Use this link (https://dec.vermont.gov/watershed/lakes-ponds/lakes-and-ponds-rulemaking/121024meeting) to access up-to-date information on the Dec 10 meeting – the agenda, how to dial in remotely, etc.
Remember, this is your last chance to make your voice heard! Write out your comment, practice reading/timing it, and either send it in or sign up to speak. You can do this!
