Wiltse is scheduled to begin on or before Jan. 2, according to a press release from the Lake George Association. He will take the reins from Leigh Youngblood, who has served as the organization’s interim executive director since June.

Wiltse will leave his position as the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute’s executive director, a role he has been in since August. Wiltse succeeded Dan Kelting as AWI’s leader. Kelting was tapped to become the Paul Smith’s College president. Kelting said AWI will begin a national search to find a replacement for Wiltse.

Before leading AWI as its executive director, Wiltse spent several years with the organization as its water quality director, beginning in 2020. Wiltse worked at the Ausable River Association — now known as the Ausable Freshwater Center — as its science and stewardship director from 2014 to 2020.

Wiltse also taught while holding positions with AWI and the Ausable River Association, serving as a member of the Paul Smith’s College adjunct faculty from 2016 to 2020 and as a visiting assistant professor at the college since 2020.

Wiltse also is an avid outdoorsman, having held various positions with the Adirondack Mountain Club prior to his work in environmental research.

He is a professional landscape, nature and wildlife photographer. He has dedicated some of his time to photographing shelter dogs to assist in their adoptions, according to the release from the Lake George Association.

Wiltse grew up in Watertown. He attended Hudson Valley Community College, earning an Associate in Science degree. He continued his education at Paul Smith’s College, earning a Bachelor of Science degree, summa cum laude, in Field Biology in 2007. He went on to earn a doctorate degree in Biology in 2014 from Queens University in Kingston, Ontario.

New role

As the Lake George Association’s Executive Director, Wiltse said he will be responsible for leading the staff and working under the direction of the board of directors. He said his scope of leadership was similar to his position at the AWI.

“The organizations are of similar size and scope in terms of staff and budget and those sorts of things,” he said in a Nov. 19 interview. Wiltse said the difference between the two organizations lies in advocacy.

He said the AWI tends to be focused exclusively on scientific research, whereas the Lake George Association conducts scientific research but also advocates for certain policy implementation that they see as advancing the watershed’s ecological health.

“The (Lake George Association) also focuses heavily on the implementation of actions to protect the lake,” Wiltse said. The organization refers to it as a “science-to-solutions” approach.

“(The) approach is focused on doing the fundamental science and monitoring to identify and understand problems that are affecting Lake George and threaten the lake,” he said. “Then taking the next step … of looking at the solutions to address those problems, investing in implementation of those solutions and all along the way continuing that science and monitoring to assess the efficacy of those solutions and continually improve those efforts.”

Wiltse said Lake George faces many of the same problems as local lakes, such as invasive species, stormwater runoff, harmful algal blooms and road salt pollution.

“These are all stressors on the Lake George ecosystem that the Lake George Association has been, for many many years, leading efforts to address,” he said.

Wiltse credited the organization with — in the face of these challenges — maintaining a sterling reputation for the lake.

“It has incredible water quality,” he said. “It’s known as the ‘Queen of American lakes.’ It’s known for its crystal-clear waters. The work of the Lake George Association really is to protect and preserve this resource.”

Wiltse added that he spent a lot of time on Lake George when he was younger, and was looking forward to returning to the area and becoming a member of the community. Wiltse, who has lived in Saranac Lake with his partner, Shelly, and dog, Nico, will be moving to the Lake George areas as he transitions jobs.

“I’m looking forward to getting back on that lake and spending more time on and around Lake George and getting to know that community which is very passionate about Lake George and its protection,” he said.

Wiltse said he’ll miss the people and place he’s called home for the past several years.

“The team at AWI is incredible,” he said. “I really legitimately enjoy coming to work everyday and getting to see the team I get to work with and spending time with them and getting to work on some really exciting and significant projects.”

Wiltse said that as he was speaking over the phone, he was looking out his office window at Lower St. Regis Lake, which the Paul Smith’s College campus borders.

“(It) is a beautiful waterbody and a beautiful campus. I’ll certainly miss coming to Paul Smith’s College everyday as well,” he said.

Local contributions

Wiltse’s contributions to aquatic ecological research and policy approaches throughout the Olympic Region have been prolific over the past decade. Local officials credit not just his extensive research, but skills as a communicator and connections from having spent years in the area, for being able to narrow divisions and find unifying solutions to better manage local water bodies.

“Brendan Wiltse has been valuable to the village for many years. His scientific knowledge and his common-sense approach helped to bridge many gaps, open a lot of doors, and moved us forward in the fight against salt,” Lake Placid Mayor Art Devlin said on Nov. 19.

“His absence will be missed a lot in the area but I’m sure he’ll continue to work for the good of all of us in New York state,” Devlin added. “We wish him the best in his new venture and thank him very much for all that he has done.”

Wiltse dedicated much of his time in the area to helping to restore Mirror Lake. The lake had suffered extensive ecological damage from salt — used to treat roads and pedestrian surfaces in the winter months — runoff. Mirror Lake is fully encircled by road and extensive commercial and residential development.

The salt increased the water’s density and interfered with the lake’s ability to naturally turnover, or mix between its different water temperature layers, which change by depth, as the region moved between cold and warm seasons.

Without turnover, oxygen was not returned to lower lake depths, essentially suffocating native plants and animals in the lake. The lack of turnover also creates high concentrations of organic nutrients which, without proper diffusion, set the stage for harmful algal blooms, which can be harmful to people and pets if they come in contact.

Wiltse began extensive monitoring of the lake’s health in 2015.

His research not only shed light on how dire the lake’s health was, but showed that salt reduction practices could be implemented in a manner that did not threaten public safety during the winter months. It also showed that it was not too late to save Mirror Lake, and the lake’s health would begin to rebound.

“The water quality and overall health of Mirror Lake would not be what it is today without Brendan,” Mirror Lake Watershed Association Vice Chair Bill Billerman said. “His research provided the impetus for the local municipalities to cut back on road salt. He has been a consistent and reliable source of info and direction in protecting our lake, and many others.”

Wiltse presented his research on Mirror Lake at the Adirondack Champlain Regional Salt Summit — sponsored by the Lake George Association — in October.

“We have restored the turnover of Mirror Lake to what it would naturally be,” he said at the summit. While salt concentrations remain elevated, he said the trend was continuing in the right direction and hoped that Mirror Lake could serve as an example of successful collaboration and policy implementation for similarly distressed lakes.

He credited the village of Lake Placid for taking steps to upgrade their drainage systems. That diverted much of the road water runoff — which Wiltse said at the conference contained such high levels of salt that his freshwater data logger could not process it — from reaching the lake, instead flowing into catch basins.

The village also reduced the amount of salt they spread on their roads and sidewalks by investing in new spreading technology that is more precise in where salt is dropped. This allows for less total usage while ensuring that surfaces that need treatment receive it.

The Mirror Lake Watershed Association continues to advocate for commercial and residential salt reduction and other conservation measures around the lake. They credit Wiltse for helping to inform their approach.

“His advice, guidance and leadership have been instrumental in helping us answer questions about how to keep Mirror Lake healthy as well as how to promote educating our community on concerns related to the lake,” said Mirror Lake Watershed Association Chair Marcy Fagan.

“He will be missed here, but I think he will always keep us in mind,” Billerman added.