Lake Champlain Management Agencies to Host Missisquoi Bay Basin Public Meeting

Grand Isle, VT – The Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP), in partnership with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation and Québec Ministry of Environment, will host a meeting to provide an update on the condition of Missisquoi Bay and efforts to improve water quality in the bay. All stakeholders and interested members of the public are invited to attend the meeting at La cache du Lac Champlain in Venise-en-Québec, Québec on September 16 from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. 

Vermont and Québec share Missisquoi Bay and its watershed. The bay has consistently exceeded limits for phosphorus concentrations in recent decades. Excess phosphorus pollution fuels cyanobacteria blooms in the bay nearly every summer. 

Vermont and Québec have agreed to a target to reduce phosphorus concentrations in Missisquoi Bay and are both working to implement actions to achieve those targets. The Missisquoi Bay Agreement solidifies this commitment and creates a framework for ongoing accountability and coordination between Vermont and Quebec. 

“Improving water quality in Missisquoi Bay remains a priority for Lake Champlain management, shared by both agency partners and local communities,” said Dr. Eric Howe, NEIWPCC Program Director of the Lake Champlain Basin Program. “It is important to us that the public understands the challenges facing Missisquoi Bay and is involved in the ongoing effort to restore and protect its waters.” 

Staff from the LCBP, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation and the Québec Ministry of Environment will provide an overview of regulations, funding, water quality projects and planning, and progress at the meeting. 

Staff from the LCBP will facilitate question and answer sessions for each speaker. 

Registration is requested but not required. Registration and a Zoom link for virtual attendance is available at https://form.jotform.com/252464770133051.  

For more information, please contact Mae Kate Campbell at (802) 372-3213 or mkcampbell@lcbp.org. 

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The Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program coordinates and funds efforts that benefit the Lake Champlain Basin’s water quality, fisheries, wetlands, wildlife, recreation, and cultural resources. The program works in partnership with federal agencies, state and provincial agencies from New York, Vermont, and Québec, local communities, businesses, and citizen groups. NEIWPCC—a regional commission that helps the states of the Northeast preserve and advance water quality—serves as the primary program administrator of LCBP at the request of the Lake Champlain Steering Committee and administers the program’s personnel, finances, quality management and contracts. NEIWPCC is a program partner of LCBP. For further information, contact the Lake Champlain Basin Program, 54 West Shore Road, Grand Isle, VT at (802) 372-3213 / (800) 468-5227 or visit https://www.lcbp.org/.