Findley Lake Gets New Addition

Boating season is right around the corner so Findley Lake got a new addition to keep the lake clean and clear for the thousands of tourists who visit the region every year.The weed harvester isn't your average boat. It's a new 10-ton water craft that costs over $90 thousand.And it's a boaters best friend. That's because its sole purpose is to keep the waters of the 310-acre lake weed-free."We have an elevated level, similar to other lakes in the region, of nitrates and phosphates which promote the weed growth and we need to deal with that to keep the lake good for recreational and fishing purposes," explained Ed Mulkearn, Findley Lake Watershed Foundation president.The Findley Lake Watershed Foundation, The Property Owners Association and The Community Foundation have hired someone to harvest the weeds once a year since 1999.But that was inconvenient and costly. So the local organizations contributed money to buy a permanent harvester that can be used whenever it's needed. Mercyhurst College is another contributor since its rowing team uses the lake.A local campground called Paradise Bay also donated money."There was a pretty good support for doing a project like this because everyone realizes how important it is to keep the water quality and everyone was very supportive of the legislature," said Jim Carlisch, Chautauqua County legistlature representative.It's important to remove the weeds, garbage and debris to keep people coming back to one Findley Lake's main tourist attraction.Right now the docks and the boats at Findley Lake are empty, but as the weather gets warmer and hundreds of boaters will cruise the water and thousands of tourists will visit."This is a really important project for our lake and tourism is very important to our community and we're rally excited about this project," said Mulkearn.The Village of Findley Lake hopes this new addition to the water will not only increase the quality of the water, but also the community as more and more tourists are drawn to the area.


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