VT H0113

Lake Memphremagog would be declared a "lake in crisis" under Vermont law, requiring a crisis response plan that includes limits on effluent discharges to tributaries

The lake is the largest body of water in northeastern Vermont and southeastern Quebec, providing drinking water to over 175,000 people

Vermont contributes 116,216 pounds of the total 151,314 pounds of annual phosphorus loading to the lake, with 71% of the watershed located in Vermont

Phosphorus runoff is causing excessive algal growth and more frequent cyanobacteria outbreaks that threaten public health and impair swimming and aesthetic uses

The bill eliminates the requirement that municipalities must show declining real property values to qualify a lake for crisis designation, leaving only impairment status and public health/environmental risk as criteria