Ellington volunteers, town and contractors ramp up Crystal Lake milfoil removal after 2024 surge

Crystal Lake volunteers, with town support and contracted divers, escalated efforts this year to remove invasive aquatic plants after an unusually large growth event at the lake dam in 2024. Dave Arts, president of the Crystal Lake Association, said the association funded an emergency suction-harvesting response and later secured $60,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds from the town to expand removal work earlier in the season.

The Crystal Lake Association, which Mr. Arts said exists "to protect, preserve, and enhance the lake and the surrounding area," runs long-standing volunteer water-quality monitoring and plant surveys. Volunteers collect temperature and dissolved-oxygen profiles and take samples at 1-, 7- and 14-meter depths for laboratory analysis. Dr. George Nachline of Northeast Aquatic Research provides annual reports, Mr. Arts said.

The immediate problem is invasive milfoil and other nonnative plants. "The biggest problem is invasive plants," Mr. Arts said, naming milfoil, mud mat and a form of pondweed that can fragment and spread by swimming, paddles or propellers. He explained that unchecked growth can block light, impede swimming and boating, and make parts of the lake unusable.

Ellington and the association have used suction harvesting—trained divers who hand-pick plants into a pump and bag system—since a 2005 demonstration with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). The team contracts suction-harvesting services (Mr. Arts named New England Aquatic Services) and uses local labs for testing. Harvested plant material is bagged and taken to the Hoffman Road brush dump to avoid reintroduction.

Mr. Arts provided multi-year removal metrics: an early effort removed 174 bags from 17 acres after about 700 hours of work; in recent years (2020–22) crews ran roughly 120–140 hours annually and cleared about 3.5–4 acres, producing about 350 bags per year. After an emergency response in 2024 focused on a dam-area bloom, the association cleared roughly 6 acres and removed about 450 bags in that response. With ARPA funding and association resources combined for the most recent cycle, Mr. Arts said the program cleared about 16 acres and removed roughly 1,200 bags of invasive plants (about 1,000 milfoil and about 250 pondweed).

Mr. Arts described operational improvements—smaller 1-cubic-foot bags and stormwater catch basins on boats—making handling more efficient. He also highlighted the volunteer and town governance structure: a five-member ad hoc milfoil committee and a long-running partnership with the town, which provided capital funding early in the program and increased the town budget for lake work in recent years.

The ARPA award came after the town briefly opened additional proposal windows; Mr. Arts said he and Jean Burns assembled an application and were awarded $60,000, which allowed divers to work earlier in the season and increased available hours.

Looking forward, Mr. Arts said the association has applied for an invasive-aquatic-species (AIS) boat-sticker grant through Connecticut DEEP and may require additional town funding. First Selectman Laurie Burstein said she has also reached out to state Rep. Jamie Foster to identify further grant opportunities. "If something comes, you have to grab it quick," Burstein said.

The association emphasized a chemical-free approach to plant control and thanked the town and volunteers for support. Continued monitoring, repeat surveys and targeted harvesting remain the associations' strategy to manage regrowth and preserve public access.