The effects of Hurricane Irene stretch on at a popular Scotia swimming destination, leaving one less way to beat the heat this summer.
Scotia officials on Monday, July 16, announced the beach at Collins Park would be closed for the rest of the season after failing to open at the start of the season in June. The state Department of Health requires all public beaches to have four feet of visibility in the water for swimming, but flooding from Hurricane Irene left significant deposits of fine clay silt in Collins Lake that have reduced visibility.
“We were hoping we could open, but we were never able to get the water clarity where we need it,” Parks Superintendent James Marx said. “We were hoping that it would get better over time, but it really hasn’t.”
There is two feet of visibility in the lake, and village officials don’t foresee the problem disappearing before the season ends.
Marx said the problem was apparent as soon as ice started to melt. During Hurricane Irene, floodwater stretched over a majority of the park, connecting the Mohawk River and lake.
“We have never had that much influx of river sediment,” Marx said. “There is nothing historically to compare that kind of event to.”
The village tried to combat the problem by treating the lake with alum, which is a chemical compound used in this instance to clump together the fine clay particles suspended in the water. Once the particles are clumped together they sinks to the lake’s floor.
The only problem was the clumps didn’t stay settled and they easily became suspended again. Wind, waves and swimming cause the clay to rise and reduce visibility to unacceptable levels.
“When you get a really windy day … the water gets very cloudy,” Marx said. “On a calm day it will improve, but when the wind picks up a couple days later … it just goes back and forth.”
When lifeguards tried installing the docks in the swimming area, the deposits were stirred up again.
The alum treatment cost about $18,000, but FEMA is going to reimburse the expense, according to Marx. Village officials talked to the state Department of Environmental Conservation about possible solutions, and it suggested the alum treatment.
Another measure, trying to draw down the lake to remove sediment and topping off the beach area with sand, was also unsuccessful. Since the entire lake was affected, the spot treatment didn’t work.
Scotia Mayor Kris Kastberg said even though there are a lot of people who don’t swim at the beach, choosing instead to lay in the sand, the whole beach must be closed over the visibility issue.
“It is one of those things where you can’t do anything about it,” Kastberg said. “It is too bad because we are the only sand beach in Schenectady County and we get a lot of use from different people.”
He said the village had to cancel its summer swim lesson programs and the pavilions outside of the fenced in beach area will likely see much less use. The spot is popular for hosting birthday parties and family gatherings, he said.
Now, the village must wait for nature to run its course, but are implementing a “fill and flush” approach to help it along.
To flush the lake, the village pulls out the board in the dam at the east end of the lake. The water then flows into a creek that enters into the Mohawk River. After flushing, the lake naturally recharges itself with groundwater from springs along the north shore.
“What we are being told is to get this sediment out of the lake, it just has to flush itself,” Kastberg said.
He said nobody has a “good handle” on how fast the lake will turn over and clear itself out.
“Sometimes, Mother Nature just wins,” Marx said.
