Climate Change

New Hampshire is getting warmer. ‘Ice-in’ on our lakes occurs later in the fall, and ‘ice-out’ happens earlier in the spring. Research suggests that over the past approximately 100 years, the period of ice cover on New Hampshire’s lakes has decreased by one to two weeks.

A shorter period of ice cover on our lakes means less opportunity to recreate safely on the ice and negatively impacts lake health. Less ice on the lake for less time means a longer growing season for plants (including invasive plants), algae, and toxic cyanobacteria.

Warmer winters in New Hampshire are resulting in more sleet and ice. As a result, more road salt is being used to address safety hazards on roadways, walkways, and parking lots. This means more salt pollution in our waters. Increasing salt levels in our lakes may increase toxins released by cyanobacteria.

Warmer lake water temperatures during the summer can increase how long our deeper lakes’ relatively cooler, denser bottom water is sealed off from the warmer, more oxygen-rich water above. The longer the bottom water cannot mix with the water overhead, the more oxygen will be used up by chemical and biological processes during the summer. If all the oxygen gets used up, a chemical reaction may occur that releases nutrients from the bottom sediment into the water. When the lake finally fully cools down in the fall and all the water in the lake mixes together from top to bottom, these extra nutrients may cause late-season toxic cyanobacteria blooms.