Lake Sunapee Protective Association

10/17/2026

Collaborating with NH LAKES helps us get even more done for the Lake Sunapee Watershed. We are so appreciative of our partnership!

🌊 Six communities. Six projects. One statewide commitment to healthy lakes.

Across New Hampshire, communities are taking action to protect the lakes we all love—and six recently completed projects show what’s possible when we work together.

Through a partnership between NH LAKES and the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, $400,000 in grants helped communities tackle local sources of pollution, erosion, and stormwater runoff.

Why does that matter? Reducing the nutrients and sediment that wash into our lakes can help prevent harmful cyanobacteria blooms.

From Alton to Sunapee, Newton to Wolfeboro, and the Acton-Wakefield area, completed projects are helping keep pollution out of our waters, stabilize shorelines, improve stormwater management, and plan for future lake protection.

And you can see the difference! Check out our blog for impressive before-and-after photos showing how these projects transformed problem areas into lake-protection solutions. https://nhlakes.org/nh-lakes-awards-grants-to-protect-our-waters/

10/17/2026

Support the next steps for modernizing the Mount Sunapee wastewater system. Join us at the October 20 MSAC meeting reviewing Vail's Five-Year Plans.

Learn more at: https://www.lakesunapee.org/mt-sunapee

10/16/2026

It seems like every fall we are treated to the most spectacular sunrises in the Lake Sunapee Watershed! What a beautiful view captured recently by Leo Cloutier. We thought this would help brighten this otherwise cold, grey day!

Have you taken any recent pictures that you'd like to share? If so, post them here or send them to [email protected]

10/16/2026

While you're doing your fall clean-up, don’t add nutrients to our lakes by mistake! Dumping leaves into lakes adds nutrients to the water feeding algae and cyanobacteria.
Instead:
🍂Compost your leaves to create enriched soil to use in future years
🍂Rake leaves into flower beds and around shrubs—this will protect them during the winter
🍂Leave the leaves or pile them in forested areas—they provide food and vital habitat for overwintering butterflies
Learn more at: https://www.lakesunapee.org/landscaping

This photo is from the Clark Lookout trail in New London.

10/13/2026

Support the next steps for modernizing the Mount Sunapee wastewater system. Join us at the October 20 MSAC meeting reviewing Vail's Five-Year Plans.

Learn more at: https://www.lakesunapee.org/mt-sunapee

10/12/2026

The Center for Lake Studies is closed today in observance of Indigenous Peoples Day. The land and lakes of the Sunapee Region are all part of N'dakinna, the traditional ancestral homeland of the Abenaki, Pennacook, and Wabanaki peoples, past and present. LSPA acknowledges and honors, with gratitude, the land and waterways and the alnobak (people) who have stewarded N'dakinna throughout generations.

10/09/2026

The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) has released its annual fall lake drawdown schedule. Lake Sunapee's drawdown date is October 12.

For details, updated schedules, and lake-level plots, visit the NHDES Dam Bureau website: https://www.des.nh.gov/news-and-media/state-announces-its-2026-fall-drawdown-lakes

Watch this video on how Lake Sunapee's levels are managed: https://vimeo.com/1193320896?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci

10/08/2026

Yesterday, we hosted a workshop led by UNH Technology Transfer Center (UNH T2) called " The Salt Tea: Gossips and Truths About Anti-Icing Materials." Thanks to all of the contractors and municipal employees who attended the half-day session to learn more about liquids, treated salts and other materials to help reduce chlorides in anti- and de-icing operations. We are grateful for our partnerships with UNH T2 and NHDES to bring these workshops to the Lake Sunapee region.

Road salt is an issue we are concerned about as chloride levels are rising in our lakes & ponds. To learn more about what you can do to reduce your impact, visit https://www.lakesunapee.org/salt

10/07/2026

Volunteers completed the second phase of the Otter Pond Beach Shoreline Buffer enhancement project by installing infiltration steps last week. Constructed with timber and washed gravel, these steps are designed to slow water as it moves downhill, allowing it to soak into the ground rather than flow directly into Otter Pond. Building on the native planting efforts done in April, the infiltration steps and additional vegetation will work together to further reduce nutrient input into Otter Pond. By limiting the amount of excess nutrients entering the water, these improvements will help decrease the chance of cyanobacteria blooms and support the water quality of this important community gathering place.

For the detailed plan for this Watershed Management Plan project, including the native plants selected for this site go to: https://www.lakesunapee.org/recent-projects