When the level is full, or above, erosion is going to occur, especially with the multi-foot level wake that comes on weekends. The frequency, wave height and intensity of wake is scouring shoreline much more than it was 50 years ago, or eons before that. This, along with many other things, is accelerating a millennial of lake aging into a century or two.
While I agree that the dam operation staff has done well over the past few years, it would be nice to see more transparency into their decisions. For example, why does the
lake discharge report show a 99% drop in flow (4-5 cfs) for two days starting July 11'th? Is it valid data or instrumentation failure? Why is the discharge rate today at 600 cfs, when the lake is at the top range of normal? A weekly blog from the dam operations staff would be appreciated.
Some have proposed that boat wake is no worse for the lake than a good windstorm. Perhaps on the lee side of the broads, this is true. For the narrow sections of the lake, it is not. Nature (other than human nature) never hits the shoreline in the same way.
Don't get me wrong. Winnipesaukee is still a very clean lake when compared to others. But the mechanisms that cause increased aging are easy to find. Government (fed, state, local) action can help reduce "cultural aging", but those methods are not popular or as effective as everyone doing their part.
Our responsibility, as stewards of the lake, is to become better educated on the issues and causes of reduced quality, then take steps to reduce our contributions to the lake's aging.
We can start by reducing the speed and volume of water running off our properties. Remove pet's waste. Don't use phosphorus based fertilizer on our lawns. Greatly reduce use of insecticides, such as diazinon (for ants) and pyrithrines (for mosquitoes) - as a very small amount will wipe out microscopic algae eating creatures. Maintain septic systems. Help to educate others.
We all contribute to the lake aging faster. The lake can absorb some human activity, but not an infinite amount. The first steps to a cure is awareness and stewardship.
The point of all this is, while we should all do our part, the state controls the dam - which along with weekend boat traffic - is also a major contributor to lake aging.