Newsletter October 2022

From the President – 

It seems hard to believe that summer is ending and fall is just around the corner. On the lake, that doesn’t mean that lake life is over … it’s just changing. While the days of jumping off the dock, swimming and watersports are ending, boating and enjoying the lake and the surrounding beauty will continue. Enjoy!

The Annual Meeting was a huge success and I want to thank all who made that possible. New Directors were approved as was the ’22-‘23

budget. Committee reports were given and we had an informative discussion with AEP’s leadership team here at the Smith Mountain Project. I appreciate their participation and everyone’s candid but respectful questions and comments. I believe that open communication is critical. The LLA and AEP do not agree on some important issues in areas like water quality and debris management and those differences in opinion and suggested remedies must be fully understood. I think your comments and questions to them helped drive home that point. Lastly thanks to the Leesville Lake Marina team for hosting the event.

I am honored that your Board once again elected me President of the organization at the August Board meeting. I will continue to support the Board and you, the membership, to fulfill the purpose of the LLA. When first elected in 2018, I told the Board that I would serve for no more than 5 years so this will be my last year. I believe in term limits and that with the passage of time new leadership with new ideas keep an organization moving forward. You have a great Board of dedicated individuals and I appreciate their contributions. In 2022 we brought on four (4) new Directors with new talents and skills to assist the Association. Thanks to all! This brings us to 15 Directors. However we can always use new blood, ideas and enthusiasm. Several long-term Directors are reaching the end of their commitments and have served the organization well. As I have repeatedly stated, this organization is always looking for new leadership. Boater Safety and Education are critical areas we need to be serving. We are in desperate need of an individual to lead this effort. Please consider stepping up to the plate and taking a turn at continuing our efforts with your active involvement. 

Another recently-developed opportunity lies in the office of Secretary to the Board. This position offers a true “insider” perspective to the operations of the Association and what is happening in the lake community. Interested individuals should contact me at president@leesvillelake.org.

Please read the Committee Reports contained in this newsletter carefully for detailed information in areas of interest. Of particular note is our October 1, 2022 Beautification Day effort. Your help is needed. Please routinely take a look at our website for new information, pictures, Board Meeting minutes, Committee Reports; and please offer feedback to help us better understand the information you would like to routinely receive from the Board. 

We live on, play on and enjoy a great resource here on Leesville Lake. It is truly a hidden gem. Please stay safe and enjoy the fall season and all the beauty it brings.

Dave

FALL BEAUTIFICATION DAY

We have coordinated a date (1 Oct, 9:00 -1:00) with AEP to support an additional Beautification Day this fall. This will be a more focused lake cleanup, and smaller scale for volunteers, targeting MMs 7-13. Additionally, there will NOT be drop off sites, but rather the use of volunteers’ personal boats to tow/feed AEPs barge with debris. 

Boats with crews that can tow debris are what we are looking for with our volunteers this time.

Mark your calendars for October 1st from 9:00-1:00 for another effort to cleanup our lake. Volunteers please email Beautification@leesvillelake.org to sign up.

If you have any questions, please email Roy at   Beautification@leesvillelake.org

Treasurer’s Report

It is a beautiful time of the year on the lake. Since the August 31 financial report was the fiscal year-end, we can report the final results as compared to the budget totals for the year 2022. Overall, the results are good. We are slightly below budget for total income- $66,912 as compared to $67,650 – which is $737 below expected. Our expenses were higher than anticipated  at $64,360 as compared to expected $60,974 or $3,386 over. Expenses for Beautification Day were higher and so was water monitoring. The overage is about 5% of the total, which is fairly consistent with price increases through-out the economy.

Bill Beckett

Debris Committee

Happy Fall Everyone.

It’s been a long hot summer and even though the price of gas has been extreme, recreational boating still appeared to be a priority on Leesville Lake. We had our share of rain but thankfully river and creek flooding was practically nonexistent this season and the lake had less debris loading because of it. Shoreline debris-gathering by residents and efforts from AEP made a great difference throughout the lower half of the lake, however the upper region (MM 7-12), still has significant tonnage remaining.

• -The total debris collected from January to September was 950 tons.
• -AEP’s proposed plans for the remainder of September and hopefully through October will be to work crew and barge on a three to four day work week, concentrating efforts between the dam-MM2 and MM 7-12. Our committee continues to stress the need for a skimmer to address formed slicks and widespread scattered debris.
• -Delays in the Myers’s Creek offload site construction have been resolved and Appalachian resumed the permit process with Pittsylvania County. We hope to see action on the premises in the near future.
• -The state of the potential Pigg River collection/diversion devise still remains under Appalachian engineering studies and we expect an update in the next month or so.

We still have many favorable days this fall to enjoy the Lake, and debris to navigate through so please continue to be safe in your travels and report debris as much as you can.

Thank you.

Pam McMillan

Water Quality Report

  Water monitoring efforts for 2022 continue, in accordance with our 2022 MOA. In the fall we will continue sampling of the Pigg River, using the 2022 Pigg River Project Plan.

Current Water Quality health of LVL: 

1)      No overall health concerns for recreational use. 

2)     Two threats to the lake are evident and are being carefully monitored. These are:

    a)     low dissolved oxygen in the tailwaters from Smith Mountain Lake Dam

    b)     poor water quality of the Pigg River

Low Dissolved Oxygen:

Appalachian Power Company (APCo) sent LVL Association the “SMITH MOUNTAIN HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT July 2022 Monthly Water Quality Monitoring Report ES Project No.: 16402 Dated: 9/1/2022” in accordance with the Water Quality Monitoring Plan for the Smith Mountain Project. The July 2022 Monthly Water Quality Report results show data from Instantaneous DO values ranged from 4.3 mg/L to 7.3 mg/L, with an average of 5.6 mg/L. Daily average DO values ranged from 4.9 mg/L to 6.4 mg/L, with a median daily average of 5.6 mg/L. Instantaneous readings were below 5.0 mg/l from 19-31 Jul 2022, with daily average readings below 5.0 mg/l on 25-26 Jul and 28-29 Jul. This is consistent with previous year observations.

APCO has initiated Phase 3 of their Feasibility Study, which will:

1)     evaluate the practicality, effectiveness and cost efficiency of methods that increase dissolved oxygen in the tailrace without causing other water quality issues (e.g., increased water temperature).

2)     Determine life cycle costs and decide whether to act, or not.

3)     The completion of the Feasibility Plan is timely as Appalachian’s VDEQ Virginia Water Protection Individual Permit No 08-0572 (Permit) expires on March 31, 2025. It is Appalachian’s intent to file for a new permit at least one year prior to the expiration date.

No preliminary insights have been provided by APCo.

The LVL WQ Committee will continue to work with APCo, TLAC, DEQ, DWR, and other regulatory agencies to achieve satisfactory DO levels in Leesville Lake.

2022 Pigg River Study

Tom Shahady, Tony Capucho and Charlie Hamilton met on 13 Sep to finalize the Pigg River sampling plan for September and October 2022. Bacterial Source Tracking (BST) will be conducted (3 host markers per sample) on 9 water samples focusing on the following analyses: Human-HF183 ddPCR, Cow-CowM2(EPA1), and Ruminant_Rum2Bac.

Our 2022 Pigg River Study Objectives are:

(1) Closely study the area between Chestnut Hill and Colonial Turnpike (the area implicated as contaminated with sediment from the Power Dam removal) to quantify the extent to which the sediment in this area impacts bacterial/nutrient/sediment water quality in the Pigg River.

(2) Identify sources of bacterial contamination by identifying the bacterial content of water during both low flow and storm events.

(3) Quantify the impact of this sediment by conducting sediment disturbance experiments (water collected before and after sediment disturbance) in conjunction with bacterial source tracking to specifically characterize how this underlying sediment contributes to bacteria in the water. 

(4) Evaluate the efficacy of E. coli / Enterococci ratios in determining the source of bacterial contamination. We need to identify this impact to suggest management of sediment as it impacts water quality to Leesville Lake and continues its migration into the lake. 

Special thanks to the LVL WQ Committee: Debbie Oliver, Kathleen Giangi, Dave Waterman, and Tony Capuco for their continuing hard work.

Charlie Hamilton

Native Plants of Leesville Lake

This quarterly column will be about native plants that live at or below the 613 foot contour level of Leesville Lake, which fluctuates between 600 and 613 feet. Each issue will feature a different species.

Asclepias incarnata

Swamp Milkweed

Swamp Milkweed is a herbaceous perennial that may grow up to 5 feet tall. It has long thin pointed green leaves on multiple vertical stems growing from a clump when exposed to full sun. They are often purplish toward the end of the growing season. The flower buds emerge white and mature to a pink or rose-purple before opening from mid-spring to early fall. Adult Monarch butterflies, hummingbirds, and native bees feed on the nectar. After pollination, flowers turn into 4-inch long tan/brown seed pods that ripen and split open, releasing silky-haired seeds that float on the wind.

Milkweed is native to wet sites and thrives in mucky clay soils but also adapts to drier sites in average moist clay or loam soils. On Leesville Lake, it grows around 610 and above, perhaps on a clay plateau. Break a branch or twig and a juice flows forth that is less milky than its upland cousins.

A tea made by simmering the roots was made in the past and taken in small amounts as a general purge and also to rid the body of parasitic worms. Aesculapius was the Greek god of medicine, and swamp and other milkweeds were used to treat a variety of ailments. Raw leaves and stems are toxic, so no wonder the deer do not touch them! Incarnata in Latin means “flesh-colored”. The young shoots, leaves and seed pods are all edible when they have been cooked. Just bring to a boil and simmer till tender to bring forth the delicate flavor.

Milkweed is easy to start from seed collected in October and November or from established clumps divided in spring. 

Richard Beaton

FISHING REPORT

Fishing has been GREAT in 2022. Usually crappie fishing in Leesville is quite sparse and limited to few fish among white perch catches. Crappie started to show up regularly around brush piles and rock piles last fall, and this year (for me) have been more consistent than white perch. Bass fishing has been good and steady…..just keep “pounding “ the shore line and docks. Never day without some fish…..Leesville is a great bass lake.

A typical crappie catch….(I only keep what we eat fresh–or share–and crappie over 10”)