Camp Runoia prides itself in being active in our local business community helping to bring people to the area, being involved in our local conservation groups, The Belgrade Lakes Association and the Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance and believing in sustainable practices at camp and in our communities. All of our year round employees serve on boards, volunteer at events and/or coach sports or participate in races, fund raisers and friend-raisers around the state, in New England and beyond.

Here’s a recent letter to our Select Board representing the importance of balancing fun and life on the lakes:

Belgrade and the lakes in and around Belgrade is such a beautiful place to enjoy with your family and friends. I can see how everyone wants to show off the fun of fire works when they come up for the weekend or have friends or family visiting. With fireworks readily accessible, we are hearing fireworks nearly every night and certainly every weekend night of the summer on Great Pond.

Fireworks used on a continual basis are disruptive to people, animals and the environment.

Our Camp Runoia campers are frightened by the loud booming and cracks and whistles that carry on nightly. Their sleep is disrupted causing adults to have to console them and stay up with them until they can fall back asleep with hopes that another round across the lake doesn’t wake them again.

Our horses, a herd of over a dozen, who are stabled during the day for lessons and out in pasture at night, run in fear during the fireworks causing injury and overuse of adrenaline, wearing on them and making them not fit for work the next day. Often we have to get the horses from the pasture and bring them into the stables during fireworks that are close by.  Additionally, the loons, the wildlife around the lake and the lake itself are experiencing loud noise, chemical exposure and plastic and paper fragment waste on a regular basis.

We hope Belgrade will be smart about fireworks and restrict usage to a few key dates of the summer for people to enjoy them and for those of us with people and animals who are disrupted by them can be prepared and keep everyone safe while enjoying the beauty of the lakes in each and every way.