Author: Pam Kelly

(No Fires on Islands in the Lake!)

There is nothing more fun than gathering around a campfire to roast marshmallows or warming your face and hands before a roaring bonfire. The Nottingham Fire Department would like to ask you about some important safety regulations before you start:

Did you know?

• You cannot light a fire before 5:00 PM unless it is a small container fire
• You must have a fire burning permit to have a fire
• You should call the Fire Department before kindling your fire to check conditions
• It is altogether illegal to light a fire on the frozen lake

These rules have been developed over time to set standards for the safe enjoyment of fires, whether for recreation or disposing of small brush and yard debris.

PLIA member Mary Colvard recently interviewed Nottingham Fire Department deputies and discovered a wealth of information that is worth passing along. Many people are in fact unaware of these regulations. Thanks for the heads up, Mary!

First, a permit to kindle a fire is always needed except when the area within a 100-foot radius from the edge of the fire is covered with at least an inch of snow or other frozen precipitation to prevent the combustion of woodland fuels.

Second, you can obtain a permit at the Nottingham Fire Station (free) or complete one online ($6.00) at NHFirePermit.com. When applying, you will need to indicate what category fire you want the permit for.

Third, there are three categories of fires and permits:

• Category I: small, controlled fire such as a camp or cooking fire no greater than 2 feet in diameter. It needs to be contained within a ring of fire-resistant material or a portable fireplace and located at least 25 feet from structures. Fire conditions permitting, a Category I fire can be kindled with a permit any time of day.

 

• Category II: controlled fire no larger than 4 feet in diameter contained within a ring of fire-resistant material or a portable fireplace and located at least 50 feet from structures. These fires may be kindled with a permit only between the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. unless it is actually raining. If the rain stops, the fire must be extinguished. (Category I and II permits are seasonal and expire on December 31^st.)

 

• Category III: any other fire that is not a Category I or II or a fire greater than 4 feet in diameter or not contained within a ring of fire-resistant material and located at least 50 feet from any structures. These fires may be kindled with a permit only between the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. unless it is actually raining. (Category III permits may be issued for up to 7 days.)

That’s a lot to remember, so here’s a summary:

Permit Type	Daytime Burn Between 9:00 a.m. & 5:00 p.m.	Nighttime Burn Between 5:00 p.m. & 9:00 a.m.
Category I (seasonal)	YES	YES
Category II (seasonal)	Only when raining	YES
Category III (For up to 7 days)	Only when raining	YES

Fourth, you cannot leave the fire until it is completely extinguished. A buried fire is not considered extinguished.

Finally, at no time can you burn trash, or treated, painted, stained, or manufactured wood. No brush, lumber, logs, or any other combustible material larger than 5 inches in diameter is permitted to be burned. Construction or demolition materials cannot be burned.

Got that? If not, rest assured that your Fire Department will answer any questions you may have. Just remember to call to make sure you are not planning a fire when dry or windy conditions make it illegal*, and to ascertain what kind of permit is required.  If no one answers, leave a message with your name, location, and time of fire. Otherwise, a fire truck may pay a call to your property or the location of your fire. Our Fire Department wants us to be safe and they are willing to answer your questions and advise you about fire safety. Visit their website:  https://www.nottingham-nh.gov/fire-rescue

*You can also obtain the daily fire danger rating by calling the Division of Forests and Lands wildfire information line (toll free): 1-866-NH-FIRES (866-643-4737) or go to https://www.nh.gov/nhdfl/community/daily-fire-danger.htm. And it’s posted as a “gauge” on the front wall of the Nottingham Fire Department.

So, come on, baby, light that fire – safely!

In a tradition started many years ago by Co-President Donna Danis, the PLIA invited all its volunteers to a cookout to thank them for their time and dedication.

On a wet Sunday afternoon – undeterred by the weather and perhaps used to it by now this summer – over 40 volunteers gathered at the State Park Pavilion to celebrate their accomplishments of the past year.

Thanks to an intense letter writing campaign promoted by the PLIA and accompanied by close monitoring of and communication with state and local officials, the planned expansion of Pawtuckaway State Park campgrounds to include 35 RV campsites with hookups along the water was abandoned.

Further, NH DES stepped up to help our Milfoil Team fight the overwhelming infestation of this invasive weed in Pawtuckaway. It launched a campaign that included surveys, education, DASH boat and crew extractions, and a targeted herbicide application. As a result, sightings of milfoil have dropped dramatically and our Milfoil Team has been able to catch its collective breath.

President Steve Soreff welcomed the crowd and listed the many activities that our volunteers have participated in throughout the year. A slide show of photos illustrated those accomplishments.

 

Vice-President Pete Wawrzonek thanked Secretary and Communications Director Pam Kelly for her work on most of the PLIA committees that implement the organization’s mission and for keeping the Board in line.

 

 

Jean-Ann St. Pierre guessed the correct number of ‘fish in the barrel’ and all attendees were invited to take home a floating “sound signaling device” to comply with NH Marine Patrol regulations on their power boats. A small thank you for big efforts by our outstanding volunteers! Please let them know you appreciate their work whenever you see them on the lake.

 

 

 

 

On Saturday morning, June 3, 2023, despite the cold and rain, 200 people assembled at the State Park Pavilion to hear our guest speaker make her presentation. For many years, Amy Smagula, Chief Limnologist at NH DES, has developed long-term milfoil management plans for Pawtuckaway Lake. Consistently she has recommended that the PLIA continue its program of hand-pulling milfoil plants, coupled with a robust Lake Host program for prevention of new incoming infestations.

For the first time this year, Amy is recommending that carefully tailored herbicide treatment could be part of our milfoil plan, because of the alarming spread and density of new milfoil growths. Her most recent Long Term Milfoil Management Plan can be found here. At the meeting she detailed her history with Pawtuckaway Lake and various milfoil management tools that should be coordinated as part of a comprehensive plan. She further explained the benefits of limited applications of a new herbicide called ProcellaCOR to help our Milfoil Team keep up with ever expanding areas of milfoil infestations. In addition, she entertained questions from the audience and answered them all with examples from her own research, expertise, and experience. For those who missed Amy’s talk, it was recorded and can be viewed here

Amy helped many of the attendees better understand her plan for the lake and how NH DES will be assisting our Milfoil Team with other endeavors, such as a Diver Assisted Suction Harvester (DASH) boat.

President Steve Soreff led a business meeting in which he announced that four Board members were retiring and four new members had volunteered to join the Board. Leaving were Dee Decker, Mike Coltin, Mike Hyer, and Les Thompson. The four members elected unanimously were: Troy Brown, Dawn Fernald, Shelly Heit, and Neil Santos. Steve then introduced Program Chairs who gave their reports, starting with Bruce Henden, new Lake Host Manager. Milfoil Team Captain Neil Santos vividly described how difficult it is in Pawtuckaway’s conditions of low visibility to locate milfoil plants to begin with. He further emphasized how carefully removing entire milfoil root systems stirs up the lake’s silty bottom to create almost no visibility at all. Plant fragments and stalks can easily be lost in the murk. He also invited people to watch the video, taken by Team member Jim Kelly and displayed on a laptop, to understand how dense and impenetrable the huge infestation near the Town beach is. He concluded by saying that his team is overwhelmed and unable, with its current resources, to meet the demands of our ever-growing milfoil menace.

Communications Chair Pam Kelly announced a letter writing campaign sponsored by the PLIA to encourage stakeholders to send their comments about the Pawtuckaway State Park expansion plan to state and local officials. She explained that the PLIA does not oppose the expansion in its entirety, but only wants the design of the new RV campsites, as proposed, to be modified. There are many reasons, she added, why those campsites should be away from the waterfront where they pose environmental and aesthetic threats. She has publicized this campaign to all PLIA members and friends so they can participate if they wish. You can read the article here.

Government Liaison Tom Duffy introduced Tara Blaney, formerly a manager of Pawtuckaway State Park who now works as a Supervisor for the NH Parks and Recreation Division. She spoke about the initiatives the park system is taking to assist our Lake Host and Milfoil Programs with their work, educating park visitors and assisting them to learn about keeping watercraft clean, drained, and dry. She explained when the next public information session about the park expansion can take place. She also noted that the State Park system now has responses to some of the concerns raised at the April 11 meeting with State Park officials.

Following all this sobering talk, attendees were invited to visit member Sonoma Potavin’s display about her Chinese Mystery Snail project and take home with them a complimentary snail collection bucket that Sonoma had created to help people find, remove, and safely dispose of these pests in the lake. Sonoma’s initiative was praised by Amy, who intends to publicize her wonderful effort.

 

The Paddle Poker table did a brisk business in raffle tickets, PLIA T-shirts were sold, refreshments were enjoyed, and many took a stab at playing the “Name that Scat” game invented by Susan Medeiros. What fun!

Finally, the organization honored Mark “Wags” Wageling with its Local Hero award, for his tireless attention and hard work as Water Testing Chair. Wags manages a team of dedicated members and provides them with collection bottles to take water samples, which he delivers to the State labs in Concord every month for testing. As “Commodore” of the good ship Water Testing, he and his crew are out on the lake in all kinds of weather taking samples and measuring various qualities of our lake water. He is truly an unsung hero who deserves all our thanks!