In a collaborative effort with the Upper Saranac Foundation (USF) and the Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI), the Town of Santa Clara has been awarded a nearly $15,000 grant from the Lake Champlain Basin Program and the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission. This grant helps underwrite the cost of the 2024 Watershed Stewardship Program. The USF applied for the grant on behalf of the town and AWI will administer the program.
The Watershed Stewardship Program helps protect the Upper Saranac watershed by reducing the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) through watercraft inspections and decontamination services, performed by trained Watershed Stewards. These stewards, partially funded by this award, will be stationed on Upper Saranac Lake at Back Bay and at the Fish Creek Campground. In addition to increasing visitor understanding of AIS issues and spread prevention measures, stewards offer inspection certification and decontamination of vessels and equipment that are considered a risk of spreading AIS by not meeting the Clean, Drain and Dry Standard.
A law adopted in 2022 requires boaters operating any kind of motorized watercraft inside the Adirondack Park to carry a certificate confirming their motorboat is free of harmful aquatic invasive species. Motorboat operators can receive a watercraft inspection certificate from our Watershed Stewards at the Upper Saranac Lake boat launch. You can learn more about this regulation by clicking here.
USF works with AWI to oversee the Watershed Stewardship Program. The AIS decontamination unit at Back Bay is owned by the USF and operated by AWI Watershed Stewards. Additional funding through the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Adirondack Park-wide Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program will provide stewardship coverage seven days per week beginning Memorial Day through Labor Day, and weekend coverage through Indigenous Peoples’ Day. In previous years, USF subsidized the expense of additional stewardship coverage through donations from our supporters.
Funding for this grant is provided by the Lake Champlain Basin Program and the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission. For more information on the Upper Saranac Watershed Stewardship program, visit https://usfoundation.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/USF-Final-report-for-2023-1.pdf