Arrow Point Preserve Dedicated to Peter Mullen
On August 24, a perfect summer evening on Lake Waramaug's Arrow Point, ninety friends of the Mullen family, the Task Force and the Lake Waramaug Association gathered for a ceremony dedicating the LWTF's preserve at the end of the point to Peter P. Mullen.
The dedication plaque reads:
"This preserve is dedicated to Peter P. Mullen, in recognition of his 50 years of leadership and support in protecting Lake Waramaug, and to all who share his vision and commitment to preserve the health and beauty of this lake."
Tom McGowan, Executive Director of the Task Force, spoke of the many contributions made by Mr. Mullen, who passed away in October of 2011. Those initiatives, all of them critical to sustaining the lake's ecological health, are in evidence around the shoreline and in the watershed, and include the purchase of the Arrow Point property that now bears his name.
The preserve is the site of the Robert Frost aeration system, which plays a key role in the controlling of surface phosphorus and the reduction of algae growth.
The Mullen family with the Peter P. Mullen dedication plaque. Left to right: Jeff Mullen, Billie Mullen, Kirby Mullen, Lucy M. Ball, Elaine M. Peer and Peter C. Mullen.
Diatom Experiment Shows Encouraging Results
In the spring of 2012, the Task Force embraced a Diatom enhancement strategy for the lake at the suggestion of our limnologist Dr. Robert Kortmann.
Diatoms are a "good" form of algae that are prominent in cooler water in the spring. By activating our layer aeration systems earlier, we were able to expand those favorable conditions and hold off the transition to dominance of blue-green or "bad" algae. The trade-off yielded slightly poorer Secchi Disc readings of water clarity in April, followed by significantly better transparency from May through October (see chart).
The enhancement approach will be used again this spring and Dr. Kortmann is considering additional strategies to build on these encouraging results.
