ROCHESTER - A new Snow’s Pond Association came before the Rochester Conservation Commission & Town Forest Committee on Tuesday, Oct. 2, to outline their organizational goals and ask for related tips. Michelle Kirby, a lifelong resident on Snow’s Pond and the current president of the Association, started the group to deal with an increasing infestation of native weeds on the pond.

Complaints from pond residents about weeds date back to 1998, with additional surveys documented in 1998 and 2013, but the residents were never able to organize and implement  a pond management plan.

Kirby mentioned that when she was young, her father used to throw coins in the water for the children to dive after. But now, the pond’s condition is much changed

“The weeds were the worst I’ve seen this year,” Kirby said.  

Twelve of the pond’s fifteen landowners have joined or responded positively to the association. All of the Association’s current members are landowners because Snow’s Pond is mostly privately owned. However, Kirby still classified the pond as an “important natural resource for Rochester.”

There is no public vehicle access to the pond, but dedicated hikers can access it through the Wildlands Trust, and Kirby estimates that a thousand Rochester residents enjoy Snow’s Pond each summer. In addition, because it is the highest pond in town, Kirby believes that Snow’s Pond serves as a gauge of where Rochester’s water table is.

The Snow’s Pond Association plans to carry out additional research over the winter and perform a pond mapping to assess the weeds in the pond next August. After that, they will come up with a more detailed plan for pond management, which will likely require town permitting.