The Candlewood Lake Authority is working diligently with our partners to preserve and protect Candlewood Lake.  This summer, there has been a greater CLA presence on land, on the water and online!  Please share this important work with friends and neighbors by forwarding this email and asking them to subscribe. 
CLA Presence at the Boat Launches

If you’ve used the State of CT or municipal launches on Candlewood this summer, you may have been greeted by Candlewood Lake Authority staff prior to launching. This year, two new CLA initiatives at the launches have been rolled out; one to help prevent invasive species and the other to help keep boaters safe.
Through a CT DEEP grant, the Candlewood Lake Authority has introduced the brand new Lake Steward Program! The Stewards greet boaters at the public boat ramps and offer to perform an invasive species inspection of their vessel and trailer. In the course of the quick inspection, one steward gathers anonymized data to help inform future invasive species prevention efforts, while the other inspects the boat and trailer for invasive species. The CLA hopes to grow this program in the coming years to provide even more coverage!
The CLA Marine Patrol has also been offering safety inspections at ramps to boaters wishing to launch this summer. By educating boaters that they need enough life vests, the required safety equipment and any required safe boating certifications prior to launching, it creates a safer boating environment for all who wish to enjoy a day on Candlewood Lake.
Before Heading Out on Candlewood Lake
Please ensure that you...
Improving and Expanding Our Presence On the Water

This year, the CLA launched their first purpose-built aluminum patrol boat, built by Silver Ships.  Not only does this new vessel expand the CLA Marine Patrol fleet, allowing for an additional patrol unit to provide public safety on the lake during weekends and busy periods, it also provides the Patrol with a boat designed for the work they do and one that is designed to perform in and withstand the conditions on our lake.   
Just because the sun goes down, doesn’t mean that everyone heads back to the docks, and the CLA Marine Patrol has made a big push this year to expand shifts later into the night to provide public safety for boaters who are out enjoying the lake after dark. 

If you do wish to be out after the sun sets, please remember the following:

  • Personal Watercraft (PWCs) / Jet Skis are only allowed to operate from Sunrise to Sunset.
  • All boats under way at night must have illuminated red and green bow lights along with a 360 degree white light.
  • Boats at anchor at night must have their white stern light illuminated the entire night.
  • Please keep the noise down and be a courteous boater. At night when the lake is quiet, every word of a conversation on a boat from the middle of the lake can be heard, so imagine how loud a stereo is!
CLA PWC Patrols
As part of the CLAs efforts to expand and improve their services, the CLA took a fresh look at ways to best use their PWCs as a tool for public safety on the lake. As a result, CLA Marine Patrol officers are focusing their PWC Patrols on educating and interacting with other PWC operators and boaters who are in areas that are hard to bring a patrol boat, such as near groups of anchored boats or close to islands.
Not to be outdone, the environmental side of the CLA has expanded as well! This year, we have doubled our water quality sampling program.  What was once a monthly program is now being conducted twice each month from May through October. This provides us with a greater understanding of what is happening throughout the season in our lake to better inform any management recommendations we may make.
As we look to better understand what recent zebra mussel findings in Candlewood mean, the CLA now is working with Western Connecticut State University to analyze water samples for zebra mussel DNA. Dr. Wong and his staff will analyze 50 water samples this season for zebra mussel DNA that would indicate whether adults in the lake are successfully reproducing. So far, the 5 samples that have been analyzed did not return any evidence of DNA, but we will continue our sampling as the season continues!

There have been localized blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) blooms in certain parts of Candlewood Lake. It is important to remember not to swim in water with a blue-green algae bloom, including pets. While every bloom is not necessarily dangerous, if those cyanobacteria are releasing toxins it could pose a hazard of respiratory illness, skin irritation, and gastrointestinal distress. See the pictures below for a comparison of a blue-green algae bloom (potentially dangerous) vs green algae (not-harmful). Visit our blue-green algae page to learn more about the possible health risks of blue-green algae. 
Blue-green Algae
Filamentous Green Algae
The past few weeks have seen weather patterns conducive to the growth of cyanobacteria (rain, followed by warmth and sunlight) so their growth isn’t surprising.

Blooms will generally be temporary and won't persist for more than a few days in each location. If you see a blue-green algae bloom you should either wait until it is no longer present or go to a different part of the lake without an active bloom. We are working with Western Connecticut State University to test the public beaches weekly for cyanobacteria toxin. We post the results of that monitoring every Friday on our Facebook Page.
Enhancing and Expanding Our Presence Online
As we noted in an earlier newsletter, the CLA launched a completely rebuilt website in May bringing new content and a fresh look to visitors looking for information about Candlewood Lake and the CLA.
To go along with that, the CLA has also been working to reach new audiences with an expanded social media presence and increased content delivery. While growing our followers on Facebook, we also knew that many of our lake users are on other platforms such as Instagram.  Follow our social media platforms for content you can’t get on our website or in our newsletters! 
Upcoming Webinar
You may have seen our expansion into the world of webinars earlier this year when we presented on zebra mussels. After that extremely successful pilot using that platform, we are happy to announce our second webinar! Join us Thursday, August 5th at 7 pm on Zoom for the “Candlewood Lake Environmental Report Card”, where we will talk about several environmental aspects of Candlewood lake, and give a status update. Some topics include: blue-green algae, invasive species, and other important water quality metrics.


Meeting ID: 833 8885 2364
Password: 605877

It has been a busy year for the CLA, and we look forward to sharing future updates on the progress we are making to ensure Candlewood Lake is ecologically sound and safe for all to recreate on.