October 2023 Newsletter

From the President – 

It is indeed an honor to serve as your new president. Dave Rives officially turned over his position to me in August and will continue to support our association as a board member. We are incredibly grateful for all he has done to improve the beauty, safety and quality of our lake.  Additionally we have had a number of board members who have faithfully served our association resign from their posts in August and we are in the process of bringing in new folks to take over those responsibilities. For those that have an interest in serving, please feel free to email me at

President@leesvillelake.org, or reach out to any member of our board.  

I recently sent an email to our members regarding the need for a treasurer and requesting a volunteer to step up to the task. I am thankful to Edwin Hanson for responding as a volunteer. He met with our board members at the recent meeting, was approved as a board member and will be filling this most important position as our association treasurer.

So change is about and that is the topic of this fall newsletter. The season is changing, summer has come and gone; the leaves are changing colors and the beauty of fall is here; our board has new members to carry on the business of your association, and yet our focus remains the same… to ensure Leesville Lake is a safe environment for all to enjoy. Each of our committees and their chairs are working diligently to that end.  

We will continue to work with our partners at TLAC and APCo as we make steps to improve our lake. But we also need your help if we are to truly make our lake The Blue Jewel near the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Please join us for association meetings, make debris reports, participate in HOA community clean up days and, you absolutely must participate in our annual Beautification Day (June 8, 2024).

I have a military friend who uses a breakfast analogy of bacon and eggs to demonstrate true commitment. In that breakfast, the chicken participated, but the pig was committed. We need your commitment to our lake. Let’s all do our part to make Leesville Lake safe and beautiful. Be committed!

Thank you for your continued support,  

Roy Kelley

President LLA

October 14^th Leesville Lake Association General Membership Meeting, 10:30 AM at the Altavista Train Station.

We are happy to have Reg Anderson as our guest speaker for our meeting. Reg has been a real estate agent in the Leesville Lake area for a long time and will be updating us on recent changes in the market.

Light refreshments are planned and we would appreciate any treats such as finger foods, pastries, or cookies to share with attendees. Thank you!

2024 Calendar change announcement

The 2024 calendars are in! Come to the meeting on 10/14 10:30 AM at the Altavista Train Station and get yours now! (only $12, if picked up in person.)

We resisted as long as we could but due to rising printing and postage costs we must raise the price of the annual LLA calendar. Effective September 1, 2023 the 2024 calendar will be $12 and the cost to mail it will be $3. That’s the bad news. The good news is that you can order and pay online through the LLA website by using this link. $12 for the calendar and $3 for postage. Once they are printed and ready, we will get them in the mail to you. If you haven’t already, include your 2023-2024 dues! Thank you for submitting photos, supporting LLA by paying dues and buying a calendar and enjoying our yearly creation.

Navigation Committee Report

Hazard Buoy Update

All 12 of the planned and approved Hazard Buoys are installed.

There was a new Hazard/Danger Buoy recently approved and installed by a homeowner on the Pittsylvania County side of the lake at approximately mile 7.5. This buoy is adjacent to the dock on the large point in Eagle Point Shores subdivision. There have been numerous reports of boats and jet skis passing close to and even between the buoy and the dock. This behavior presents a serious danger to people and property. Please inform your family, friends and acquaintances that disregarding this buoy and all the safety buoys installed on the lake is a violation. Should you notice violations of the safety buoys try to obtain the description of the boat or jet ski including their displayed numbers if possible and report this with the date and time to the Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR).

Aids To Navigation

AEP still plans to have a Coast Guard representative survey the lake while considering our recommended 13 proposed navigation aids intended to identify the channel where the location of the channel may be in question. AEP is responsible for the installation and maintenance of these proposed markers. AEP has informed us that due to budget cuts (USCG) this survey is now planned for some time in the future.

Navigation Committee

As of the end of August I have stepped down from the position of Chairman of the Navigation Committee. When I retired and moved to Leesville Lake in 2015, I wanted to do something to help this beautiful lake, my back yard. I volunteered to participate in the Lake Association as part of the Navigation Committee. Our initial efforts were focused on installing buoys at those locations presenting the most significant hazards to all those navigating our lake. The installation of those Hazard Buoys has been accomplished. I’m very pleased to have had this opportunity to aid in the continued safety of Leesville Lake. 

I’m happy to report that Glenn Coleman has agreed to accept the position of Chairman of the Navigation Committee. I still plan to participate as a member of the Navigation Committee and will be assisting Glenn wherever I can. 

Thank you all, especially those other members of the Lake Association, for your support. I would like to encourage all to consider participating in the Leesville Lake Association in whatever capacity you can to continue to keep Leesville Lake a beautiful and safe place for all of us to enjoy.

Joe Humphrey

As always, please navigate our lake safely!

Your Navigation Committee

Glenn Coleman – Chairman

Joe Humphrey

Dick Grabowski

Debris Committee

Happy Fall Season!

As of the date of this article submission (9/15/23), the lower half of the lake appeared to be in good shape. The main channels and shorelines throughout mile markers 1-7 had minimal debris compared to 2022. Unfortunately, the upper half of the lake has significant tonnage still circulating. It is especially noticeable on shorelines at lower lake levels and throughout the main channels when Appalachian generates power from the Smith Mountain Dam. For those of us that continue to use the lake, please be aware of these hazards.

Our Committee continues to have regular communication with Appalachian through monthly surveys, recommendations and in person meetings with upper management. Our position still remains that there is not enough manpower and equipment to address the amount of debris within all miles of the lake, not just the lower half. Although we are pleased to see some improvements in communication and response time, we still have a standoff on Appalachian’s position that they believe they are in general compliance with their FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) license.  

The total debris removed from Leesville Lake since January has been a whopping 2,245 tons. It is unfortunate that most of this debris took a whole recreation season to address and we are still left with countless tons in the upper half of the lake so again, please use caution.

-According to Appalachian, delays in the Myers’s Creek offload site construction are still an ongoing issue with the permit process and/or the Long-Eared Bat nesting season.

We hope to see action on the premises in the near future. 

-The state of the potential Pigg River collection/diversion device still remains under Appalachian engineering studies and we hope to receive an update before the end of the year.

Thank you to all my Committee Members, Lyle and April Firnhaber, Roy Kelley and his first mate Teri, my first mate Gary, Dave Rives and Rob Johnson- for your input, monthly survey participation and reports. It takes a small village to keep us going and we would welcome new committee members to help share this load. Please consider contacting one of us with your ideas or availability. In the meantime, please keep reporting debris! 

Use our easy form on the Quick Links menu on the LLA website.

Thank you all for your participation.

Pam McMillan-Chair

debris@leesvillelake.org

434-770-1819

Treasurer’s Report



We’ve escaped the hot summer of 2023 and are now in beautiful autumn! We hope you are enjoying the lake in all seasons. For those of you who received invoices in July or August and paid your dues, thank you very much! We appreciate your continued support. For those of you who think you should have received an invoice and did not, please reach out to treasurer@leesvillelake.org or membership@leesvillelake.org for clarification. We are aware that we missed some current members in the invoicing process. Whether or not you received an invoice, if you think you owe dues for the current fiscal year (9/1/23-8/31/24), please pay them as soon as you can. $25 is a great deal and you can pay them online or mail a check or money order to: LLA, PO Box 68, Altavista, VA. 24517. Thank you!  

Water Quality Report

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. Appalachian’s VDEQ Virginia Water Protection Individual Permit No 08-0572 (Permit) expires on March 31, 2025. LLA has communicated to APCo and FERC that APCo’s resolution of the DO challenge should be central to whether Permit 08-0572 is renewed, or not.

b) Poor water quality of the Pigg River (subject to 2023 studies)

SMITH MOUNTAIN HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT July 2023 Monthly Water Quality Monitoring Report ES Project No.: 16402 Date: 9/5/2023, Results show data from:

1) Instantaneous DO values ranged from 4.3 mg/L to 8.2 mg/L, with an average of 5.8 mg/L (minimum 4.0 mg/l).

2) Daily average DO values ranged from 4.9 mg/L to 6.9 mg/L, with a median of 5.7 mg/L. (minimum 5.0 mg/l)

As shown on Figures 2 and 4, DO concentrations decreased from the beginning to the end of July, with 31 July 2023 being the only day out of tolerance.

2023 Pigg River Studies commence in mid-September 2023. TLAC has been briefed on objectives, and funding requirements.

2023 Pigg River Study Objectives:

In 2023, we propose a further investigation of bacterial content in the waters of the Pigg River and its sediment. We will employ the same sampling strategy as utilized in 2022, but analysis of the nature of bacteria present will be assessed by 16s next generation sequencing (16s NGS). This analysis will provide information about the classes of bacteria present, their metabolism and pathogenicity. Thus, we hope to determine if the presence of large quantities of E. coli presents a human health threat or reflects ongoing processes of vegetative decay in the sediment. We should also be able to assess the nature of bacteria in the Pigg River waters during low flow and increased runoff conditions. 

 Key parameters to be tracked are turbidity, total phosphorus, nitrate-nitrogen, pH, dissolved oxygen, and two bacteriological tests – E. coli and Enterococci coliform bacteria. Additionally, 16s NGS will be utilized to further characterize the prevalence of different classes of bacteria in the Pigg River and its sediment. This information will allow us to identify appropriate potential risks to human health, courses of action and partners (government agencies and municipalities) with whom we can address the problem.

The Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) advisory is no longer in effect for Blackwater River arm of Smith Mountain Lake

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.

Cornus amomum

silky dogwood, swamp dogwood

 Silky Dogwood is a good shrub for wet, shady areas. The leaves are similar to the Virginia State flower tree seen in the woods and landscape planting. Its small white blooms emerge in clusters from April to May and bloom into June, forming drupes of berries that turn blue in August. Birds are attracted to the fruit and deer do not chew the leaves. It can grow from 6 to 12 feet high and wide in a rounded form, sometimes making thickets from stems that touch the ground and root. The leaves and twigs have silky hairs along the undersides. It is often used for erosion control along the banks of streams and lakes.

Membership Committee

Currently, LLA has 234 household memberships, an increase of six since

last month. Those six households are former members who have re-engaged with

the association and we are very thankful they have. Welcome back!

In working through our accounting system, which is called Aplos, I found

one problem that prevents us from often getting a correct tally of members. It has

to do with how members renew their memberships online, but the problem isn’t

with members but a tiny limitation with Aplos. Let me explain.

When we all joined, we joined under certain names and that set of names is

how Aplos keeps the account.

If someone signed up as a member as Joey Smith, the account name is as

such. When Joey renews his membership online, he’s not shown his actual account

but a page where you enter Name, Address, email, etc., and then make the

payment.

If Joey Smith renews the second year as Joseph Smith, a new account is

created. This creates duplicate accounts for one membership.

There was a recent member who renewed online whose account is actually

under both the husband and wife’s name, and her name is a nickname. This year,

the wife renewed, but used her full name and used an address not currently in the

system. I thought it was a new account. But speaking with the acting treasurer, we

were able to see that Susie and Susan Smith were the one and the same.



I have 6 more possible duplicate accounts and I will contact those

households to make sure these accounts are either different or a duplicate. If a

duplicate, I have to merge the two together and once merged, the deed cannot be

undone. This is a process that must be done with caution and close attention to

details.

Also, next Spring, I will send out emails to all members letting them know

the original name of their account, so if they renew online a new account isn’t

created.

Members can always renew in other ways than online, by using a check or

cash. The LLA Board wishes to make the dues renewal process as easy as possible

for it members and we wish to make sure your donation history is kept intact.

Contact me at membership@leesvillelake.org if you have any questions. All

on the LLA Board are thankful for each and every one of you and that you all are

so faithful in renewing your dues. All of us, members and those on the board, make

the Leesville Lake community strong and vibrant and good neighbors.

Cynthia Coleman

FISHING REPORT

FISHING REPORT…..STRIPER FISHING IN LEESVILLE LAKE 

Striper Fishing and Leesville Lake can be “SPOTTY “! BUT WHY?

The seasonal patterns of Stripers are well known on Smith Mountain Lake, (because of Fishing Guides),but not so on Leesville. Striper Fishing in fall, winter and early spring can be quite good on Leesville, but summer is almost a total ZERO. (In fact, most fishermen give up on Striper fishing in the summer. Most summer Stripers caught are a lucky byproduct of fishing for other species.)

Here’s a hypothesis on why: 

Stripers are a PELAGIC fish, meaning they inhabit a specific portion of the water column. In that column they need: 1)specific oxygen levels and 2) a specific temperature range to survive. (The range they seek is more than 4 mg/l of oxygen and below 75° water temperature.) and 3)there must be food. In Leesville that is primarily gizzard (or threadfin) shad.

When oxygen levels drop below 4mg/l and temperature goes above 75°, that condition is known as a TEMPERATURE-OXYGEN SQUEEZE. Per the LLA water quality report for 2022, dated February 2023, this is a severe problem in the summer months, especially at the Leesville Dam section. In the summer, also, the Smith Mountain water dam releases are low in oxygen. The lake has a real SQUEEZE going on. And, we fisherman lose knowing WHERE THE STRIPERS’ HOME IS.

The one section that has good POTENTIAL is by (route 608) Toler Bridge/Pigg River. Oxygen RICH Pig River water mixes with COLD Smith Mountain fake water creating good Striper habitat, with plenty of food. Some proof…….from talking to some fishermen this year, 

only around Pigg River is where Stripers were caught often ………from June through early September.

NOW….for the GOOD NEWS: With the cooler weather, the TEMP/ OXYGEN SQUEEZE goes away, and Stripers move to the lower end of the lake…………. 

Here’s a TIP FOR A SUREFIRE DAY: 

IF you see SEAGULLS…….troll or drift through where the seagulls are “resting” or “diving” for shad ….than JUST WATCH YOUR LINE…..    GOOD FISHING !!!

Pic of a striper caught around MILE MARKER 6 on 9/12….the SQUEEZE IS OVER…

If there’s interest for more information, there are many good articles on the TEMP/OXYGEN SQUEEZE on Google and also a worthwhile article on Stripers in Virginia by our regional Fish Bioalogist, Dan Wilson (as one of the authors). https://dwr.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/media/Virginia-Striped-Bass-Management-Plan-Reservoirs.pdf

PS… if anyone has knowledge about SUMMER STRIPER FISHING SUCCESS, please IMPROVE the FISHING REPORT and share your info with the GREAT LEESVILLE LAKE FISHING COMMUNITY…..contact the newsletter editor at newsletter@leesvillelake.org. (No worry on lost fish to other fishermen……We lose more fish over LEESVILLE dam, than we will ever catch.)

For questions or more information, please call John Kese at 434 942-1553