Figure 1 shows that there are, on balance, severe soil limitations to septi c tank absorption fields throughout the watershed (Anon., 1994). Sewage and effluent discharges from lakeside residences and business establishments are almost entirely due to these phenomena.
The location of Cooperstown at the outlet of the lake is fortunate. Much of the urban runoff associated with the village does not reach the lake--with the exception of Willow Brook drainage--but enters the Susquehanna River. Potential eutrophication relative to land use in the towns of Otsego and Midd lefield is not considered severe, except that associated with strip development along the lake, assuming that further development takes place according to the prerequisites of good land-use planning. However, problems do exist in the town of Springfield and in Herkimer County where hamlets having comparatively high population densities, combined with soils naturally rich in nutrients associated with agriculture, result in drainage via Cripple Creek, Hayden Creek and Shadow Brook that contribute signif icantly to lake eutrophication (see Figure 5).
