Welcome to the Lake Champlain Action Task Force's Home on the World Wide Web

Lake Champlain is one of the nation’s most scenic and most widely visited Lakes, bordered on one side by the Adirondacks of New York and on the other by the Green Mountains of Vermont. Home to numerous local communities and industry as well as a thriving summer tourist trade, the Lake region is one that depends on the Lake’s livelihood for its own economic and ecological survival.

Lake Champlain is the centerpiece of a widely visited area of both New York and Vermont, and its importance in both ecological and environmental terms cannot be overstated. Virtually everyone who lives in the Lake Champlain area depends on the resources that the Lake provides for various uses, from drinking water to recreation, to agriculture and to waste disposal. The Lake has a very significant economic impact on the area. Agriculture, which uses the land around the Lake and clean water from the Lake for production of various crops and animals, creates approximately $415 million per year in sales of agricultural and dairy products. In addition, the Lake Champlain region is responsible for generating large revenues from recreation-related industries that can function only with a clean lake. Overall, $82 million was spent on fishing, hunting, and wildlife-viewing activities in 1991. Tourism provided approximately $2.2 billion in overall revenue in 1990 (Opportunities 1-2).

However, economic values alone are unable to truly indicate the full value of the Lake Champlain region. The ecological and environmental diversity, as well as the aesthetic beauty of the surrounding mountains, rolling hills, and pristine rivers which flow into the Lake provide vacationers and residents with immeasurable benefits unique to the Lake Champlain area. These benefits, though difficult to define in monetary terms, are nonetheless and integral part of the region (Opportunities 3).

Features:

1. Link to Facts about the Lake

2. Market Failures

    a). Zebra Mussels

    b). Phosphorus

    c). Toxins

    d). Wetlands

3. Valuing the Resources of the Lake Champlain Region: Conjoint Analysis

4. Policy Proposals and Evaluations

    a). Phosphorus

    b). Toxins

    c). Zebra Mussels

    d). Wetlands

Credit: http://www.anr.state.vt.us/champ/landmap.htm

Market Failures

Zebra Mussels

One of the most vexing problems for the Lake and those who live near it or utilize it is the zebra mussel. Zebra mussels are a stock pollutant brought into domestic waters by international shipping and into the lake on the hulls of vessels, and the zebra mussels then attach themselves to ships, pipes, and rocks. This natural activity of the mussels clogs the pipes that take in water from the Lake and also can cause physical harm to swimmers with their razor sharp edges, tearing into the feet of those without protective footwear. This can lead to extensive costs that must be borne not by those people doing the polluting but rather by the private homes and businesses, as well as by local governments. The market fails to take into account the negative externalities caused by these Zebra mussels.

It is extremely difficult to determine the source of the contamination, which makes assigning any blame and internalizing costs difficult as well. Furthermore, since the contribution of each individual source is so small, tracking or trying to fine each source to internalize costs of the polluter would be impractical. Another consideration about this form of pollution is that it is a living organism that has the capability to multiply. Therefore, the introduction of even a small amount, whether intentional or not, can lead to a much larger problem. In this case a much larger cost is borne by society even in the event of a small amount of pollution.

Phosphorous

Phosphorous pollution is another major concern for the Lake Champlain region. Phosphorus is the cause of increases in algal blooms that decrease the scenic of the Lake value by turning the water either green, cloudy, or both, creating unpleasant odors for those visiting the Lake, and causing the depletion of oxygen needed for fish and other species. When the amount of phosphorous entering the Lake remains high over time, they can accelerate eutrophication, the natural aging process of lakes where biological and chemical material accumulate. These problems can limit the recreational activities such as fishing, swimming, and boating. This constitutes an external cost that must be borne by the businesses that thrive on recreational tourism, vacationers looking to travel to a beautiful area, and local residents (by lowering property values). The costs for cleaning are usually borne by individuals, businesses, and the government, and not the actual polluters.

Phosphorous pollution comes from a variety of sources. The major point sources for this pollution are municipal wastewater treatment facilities and industrial sites. There is no mechanism in place to try and internalize these costs. Non-point sources in this area are also major problems. Agricultural runoff form fertilizers is one of the most important, as there is pronounced agriculture on both the New York and Vermont sides of the Lake. In the case of non-point sources assigning, blame and attempting to internalize costs to the polluters is extremely difficult. As of 1996, phosphorous levels in many parts of Lake Champlain were comparable to the most polluted parts of the Great Lakes, which indicates the severity of the problem.

Toxins

Toxic pollution is another major water quality issue. As with phosphorous pollution in Lake Champlain, these toxins, mainly heavy metals, come from industry and sewer leakage and runoff. Again, determining the exact sources of the run-off can be difficult and therefore any attempts to efficiently internalize cost to the polluters will be difficult. Even if potential sources can be identified, determining how much pollution comes from each source, and how much that contributes to overall levels in the Lake, will also be difficult.

If left unattended, this pollution can lead to serious health problems for humans and wildlife. Serious effects on recreational gaming activities can result if an area is branded as having contaminated water and wildlife. This is especially true of fish. Contaminated areas of the lake can change with internal lake currents and therefore, an area with no polluting sources could feel the effects of pollution from sources located far away.

Wetlands

Finally, there is the problem of wetland degradation in the Lake Champlain basin area. The wetlands are incredibly vital to the ecological livelihood of the region. Wetlands provide a critical habitat and nourishment for fish and wildlife. They regulate sediment, pollutant and nutrient filtration for water quality protection. They provide a form o flood control. Wetlands are crucial to protection of groundwater and drinking water. They also provide shoreline stabilization and help to prevent other forms of erosion. For recreational users they provide an excellent opportunity for bird watching and hunting. In this vein a key component of the wildlife benefits wetlands provide is the Atlantic Flyway, a migratory corridor for water fowl and other wetland birds (Opportunities 52).

The danger that the wetlands have been put in has been caused by the draining off of water in these areas to make room for residential or commercial uses of the land. Wetlands that remain intact are threatened by various forms of pollution and recreational destruction. Rarely are the costs to the environment considered in cases like these. Instead developers take advantage of cheaply buying land that most people consider unusable. Industries take advantage of these areas as alternative dumping grounds, to avoid directly polluting a body of water. Estimating the added value to the environment these lands is difficult and therefore any attempts to internalize costs for polluters, such as assigning fines or increasing the price of this land, is difficult. Destruction of these poses an immense cost on the potential tourism for the area. Wildlife viewing, gaming, recreation, and scenic beauty all are important draws to the area, and each of these qualities is vitally linked to the survival of the wetland areas.

Valuing Lake Champlain as a Natural Resource

    Attempting to understand how valuable a natural resource is to the general public can be a difficult task.  Often times there is no clear way to identify a proper economic value for certain intangible resources.  A Conjoint Analysis is an attempt to understand the cost-benefit choices preferred by the public for a particular resource, and also the proper choices that should be made through policy to protect these resources. 

    To this extent the Lake Champlain Action Task Force has developed a potential Conjoint Analysis to determine which attributes are most valuable to the respondents.  This survey if implemented will be distributed on both a local and national basis.  To take a closer look at the questionaire please click on the following link: Conjoint Analysis Questionaire.  It will open in a Word format, please feel free to e-mail any constructive comments about this questionaire which come to mind. 

Policy Options

Policy Options and Political Obstacles

Though Lake Champlain does suffer from its share of pollution, there are many things that can be done, and there have indeed been efforts to curtail and turn back the harmful effects of environmental degradation. No doubt additional funding to deal with pollution concerns could be a positive step in the right direction. To that end the Environmental Protection Agency has already provided 1.25 million dollars in funds to the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) to protect the condition of the Lake, and those funds are matched by state and private agencies. The total amount of funds from all sources, including other federal agencies, going into protecting the Lake generally exceeds 12 million dollars per year. This and additional funding can be the first step in actualizing and maintaining the health of the Lake and its surroundings.

Phosphorus

The first potential policy project deals with the reduction of point-source phosphorous in Lake Champlain through increased damage control of wastewater. Both New York and Vermont as well as local areas have provided substantial funding for the upgrading of wastewater treatment programs to promote the reduction of phosphorous. In 1998 Vermont alone provided over 3 million dollars in funds to upgrade plants in five areas throughout the state. In NY, the Clean Water/Air Bond Acts provided over $5.8 million for projects in 4 areas throughout the state. At the federal level, the EPA provided $5 million to assist in work at the Middlebury (VT) plant, and 1$.2 million at the Chazy (NY) plant. In terms of the amount of dollars spent, this is a worthwhile investment. Municipal wastewater treatment plant discharges are a significant problem in the Lake, and the 25% reduction in phosphorous that will greatly benefit the area.

There also must be greater control of phosphorous from non-localized sources, preferably using a variety of methods to achieve that end. As far as what is currently being done, in 1998 New York was awarded $800,000 in funds from the Clean Water/Air Bond Act and the Environmental Protection Fund to address certain non-point phosphorous sources. In Vermont, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the EPA provided over $1.3 million to non-point source phosphorous reduction projects. These projects included controlling such non-localized sources of pollution as erosion, runoff, fertilizer controls and the like. Some have found that these methods are more cost-effective than traditional methods because they have used flexible technologies to institute wastewater control policies. An example of this flexible technology usage is in the small hamlet of Willsboro (NY), which has used an experimental technique involving the use of a wetland containing wollastonite, a locally mined mineral which removes a significant amount of the phosphorous.

The money spent here is worthwhile, as 80% of the phosphorous entering the Lake comes from non-point sources. Still, there are so many non-point sources, it is difficult to keep track of them all. Studies have indicated that it is much more cost effective to prevent phosphorous discharge at the time of initial use than to attempt to contain or reduce phosphorous runoff after use. Along these lines, educational policies discussing nutrient management with farmers have shown to be cost effective (Opportunities 22). Funding for non-point source pollution control programs is available from the federal government at a reasonable cost to taxpayers (Opportunities 25).

Overall estimates of the costs of a program to eliminate a majority of the Phosphorous from Lake Champlain and the surrounding watershed range from $11 million to $30 million. Direct use benefits of these water quality improvements are estimated at $9 million. Judging from these estimates, an intensive plan to remove the phosphorus from the Lake is not cost effective (Opportunities 103).

Toxins

There have also been efforts to curb the number and amount of toxins in the Lake’s waters. Due to surveys conducted for the LCBP which discovered high levels of PCBs in NY, the state has begun a $23.1 million restoration project which aims for removal of contaminated sediment and debris, restoration of affected wetland areas, and additional monitoring and beach cleanup as needed. In addition, two layers of floating silt fences will be installed for the purposes of keeping contaminated materials out of the specified work area. These same studies also identified contaminants in Burlington harbor that could be potentially harmful to the area. Long-term exposure to toxic substances in sediments may also negatively affect aquatic organisms living in the harbor. For an example of controls in this area, the Cumberland Bay Sludge Bed Removal Site has been working on exactly such a project. So far it has removed 141,000 cubic yards of contaminated sludge. Additionally, private work has been done by the Cornell Cooperative Extension with farmers, teaching them how to reduce chemical pesticide use, assisting farmers with manure and fertilizer management and proper disposal of pesticides. Like phosphorous pollution, toxins need to be dealt with using a more holistic approach, one that utilizes a variety of methods to achieve its goals.

Another potential solution to the pollution problems listed above is a permit system for both point and non-point sources. Permit systems dealing with water pollution are already in place in both Vermont and New York, and an expansion of these programs could help drive markets to solve many of the ills affecting Lake Champlain. Programs like this have worked in the past, and there is no reason to doubt that they could work in this case. The only problem might be that permits are not as easy to trade with non-point sources, and that is where a great deal of the Lake’s pollution is coming from.

Zebra Mussels

As far as the introduction of zebra mussels into the lake goes, it would still seem that the best option for controlling the spread of the zebra mussels is to first keep them out of the lake through proper screening of boats entering Lake Champlain and connected bodies of water. Vermont and New York are also both developing plans for controlling all aquatic nuisance species including the zebra mussel. It is hoped that this plan will identify effective methods for removing zebra mussels from the Lake, and once it is completed and receives improvement from the LCBP, it will hopefully be submitted to the federal government for implementation funding.

Wetlands

Possible policy initiatives for restoring wetlands include installing fencing to keep livestock out of streams, stabilizing stream banks using natural materials and plantings, and creating in-stream habitat. In recent years, participants in programs like this have included the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, and private landowners.

Furthermore, the LCBP cooperative wetland acquisition strategy works with willing landowners to permanently protect important basin wetlands. In 1998, private partners such as Ducks Unlimited, the Nature Conservancy, and individual citizens of the LCBP acquired $800,000 for the acquisition of such lands. Additional support comes from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. In 1998, approximately 140 acres were bought. Private donations for Wetland Reclamation are cost effective because they reflect the fair market value of the land.

For all that can be done and is being done to preserve the environment of Lake Champlain, there are still many political difficulties that can block enactment of useful policies. Perhaps chief among those difficulties comes from the way the funds that fuel these practices are raised – taxes. There may be problems convincing those that do not live around Lake Champlain (for that matter any environmentally sensitive region) to provide financial support for its cleanup. When individuals see state and national legislation that funds or helps to fund environmental cleanup, they may wonder what they themselves will get out of the deal. While there may be some who desire a clean environment in general merely for the sake of a clean environment, raised taxes in any form raise the ire of many a voter, and that sentiment may impede serious and useful regulation. Nevertheless, there is a rationale for making taxpayers nationwide pay for cleaning Lake Champlain, as the money is put into a superfund helping to cure environmental problems.

There are other difficulties unique to the region. Some of the most egregious phosphorous and toxic polluters are non-point sources, which are by their very nature very difficult to localize. Of these non-point sources, the farming industry is largest in the greater Lake Champlain region. This non-point source provides a clear and pressing problem to the pollutants mentioned above. Not only are the specific offenders difficult to clearly identify, but farmers in general are also a large voting bloc in the area, especially in Vermont. As mentioned above, there have been efforts to educate farmers about more environment-friendly techniques, but nevertheless, enacting restrictions and then enforcing them with this group may be costly and ineffective.

As for zebra mussel infiltration, the vary nature of the problem presents potential obstacles to policy. Perhaps the only way that a government mandate could solve this problem would be through the use of chemicals to clean the Lake, and that solution would have environmental side effects that would themselves adversely affect the Lake. Other, more enviro-friendly options, like devices that clean the mussels from pumps and pipes, are more private solutions, and would be unlikely to be enacted by state, much less federal, government.

Any of the suggested policy options listed above will run into a difficulty usually reserved for air pollution. However, in the case of Lake Champlain water pollution becomes a regional pollutant as the lake borders not only two states but also two countries. Therefore any policy coordination becomes extremely difficult. Determining the regional sources of the pollution in the Lake can be an arduous task, and often times the region feeling the effects of the pollution is not the same as the region which emitted it. Convincing taxpayers in one area to support the clean-up costs in another area is a complication that is not easily solved.

Sources:

http://www.anr.state.vt.us/dec/waterq/ans/zebra.htm#impacts