LAKE WATERSHED ACTION PLAN (LWAP)

The Echo-Seymour Lake Watershed Action Plan was completed at the end of 2024 after a comprehensive analysis of the issues affecting our two lakes’ water quality. The Department of Lakes and Ponds identified the Echo-Seymour Watershed as a high-priority project as we are in the Memphremagog Watershed, and Lake Memphremagog is impaired. The Department of Environmental Conservation issued a grant of $49,878 to the Orleans County Natural Resource Conservation District with the Memphremagog Watershed Association involved as environmental consultant and sub-contractor.
Over two years, the LWAP evaluated the streams feeding our watershed, public roads, private driveways, and the shoreline to identify negative influences on our water quality. 94 prioritized projects were identified, with Echo having 24 identified prioritized projects.
4 of these prioritized projects within our watershed were selected to be provided with a design detailing the work required to remediate the issue, with each lake receiving 2 designs. Echo’s 2 designed projects are the West Echo Lake Road and the Fish & Wildlife Access area. These designs can be found below.
This chart details the core completed assessment areas, the amount of the assessment area that was completed vs the initial proposal, and what the potential outcomes of the assessments will be if all projects are completed. Notice that included in the assessments were Lake Wise evaluations, with 4 properties on Echo Lake obtaining the Lake Wise Award and one the Certificate.

Echo Lake’s 24 projects will be the responsibility of The Echo Lake Protective Association and the Lake Watershed Action Plan committee to complete in cooperation with our landowners, the Town of Charleston, and the Fish & Wildlife Department. Completion of each of our 24 projects will help improve our roads, driveways, shoreline, wetlands, and tributaries and will eliminate or mitigate the negative influences on our lake caused mostly by erosion. Our projects will improve Echo Lake’s water quality by reducing our phosphorous levels. When complete, we expect more vegetation buffers around the shoreline and our streams, resulting in a healthier Echo, which will continue to support and enable our diverse aquatic and shoreline habitat to thrive.

Some projects are small, some grand. We expect to be able to access grant funding for many projects. OCNRCD has a dedicated position, a Lake Watershed Program Specialist, whose role is to support lake associations and property owners with project implementation.

Property owners who have a project listed will be contacted by a member of the Lake Watershed Committee (LWAP) to discuss possible solutions. If you have a project and would like to address it, please email the committee at echolwap@gmail.com

Direct questions or comments to the Lake Watershed Action Plan Committee via email to echolwap@gmail.com

Committee Members: Susan Czerepak, Steve Gratton, Peggy Stevens, Deborah Zuaro, Tom Wagner