Quote:
Originally Posted by Orion
Yes, in my opening post I said I wasn't talking about invasive species, only the fact that these native plants (to the lake) are rapidly populating areas that had none and that it appears to be an explosive expansion over the last 2-3 years.
If we had no lawns extending to the water, we'd have fewer geese!  |
We had pipewort when my family got here almost 60 years ago. The pondwort has moved in, but worse is the accumulation of the
mud that both prefer.
At nearby "pristine" lakes, I've noticed that shoreline White Pines hold back the rain-driven
mud that gets relocated into the water. Back then, we lost all our marketable White Pines to a local developer.
We got MUD!
It's mostly shoreline
Eastern Hemlocks that create the soil in the first place.
Hemlocks produce huge volumes of tiny needles. In un-trampled places, I can demonstrate how one's foot can sink down about a foot or more in Hemlock needles and "soil". What washes—or
leafblower-driven—into the lake makes the squishy stuff that weeds love. How long before Hemlocks are discouraged along shorelines is anybody's guess.
• One calm day, I watched as a maintenance crew carefully raked a long Tuftonboro private beach, piled up that debris near a black plastic bag, then one of the crew got a shovel and heaved all that
back into the lake!
• If a homeowner or spec-builder does everything "wrong" to make the property more saleable,
there should be penalties.
• IMHO—
as with the Moultonborough "firetower" debacle—mitigation should take place
after the fact. I suggest putting a lien against the property when it next changes hands. (Say, 10% of the sales price as a penalty). And each time a property changes hands, a septic system inspection should be a part of the closing.
• OTOH, a reward should be in place for those who maintain an "above-average excess" of tree girth along their shoreline. Low-growing evergreens should also be rewarded with lower taxation.
Let the seller suffer the consequences of "A great view of the lake".
