Harvester In / Working

Dear Friends of the Lake,

The harvester was put in early this week and is working!

The City experienced some technical  delays in getting the harvester running corrrectly, so we appologize for the delay. The Harvester has already worked 8.5 hours clearing access to the back bay on Lake 1  as well as clearing vegetation within the bay. Clearing a channel to the bay entrance on Lake 2 was also started. One and a half truck loads of weeds have already been harvested.

It is important that everyone recognize the guidelines the DNR imposes on our permit to harvest vegetation and how the harvesting program fits into the total program to control invasive weed species and to maintain safe and navigable waters.

1. The major strategy for controlling invasive weed species( eg. Curly Leaf Pondweed) is herbicide treatment. The The City-FLLA -WSD program currently successfuly treats/controls 150-170 acres/season. This program is for "open water " control...ie water 150 ft or greater from shore.

2. The area from the shoreline to 150 ft out is the responsibility of the shoreline owner. Control of invasive or natural vegetation is allowed but requires a DNR permit  or the use of a DNR authorized applicator who would obtain the permit for you( eg Lake Management, Inc.). This includes limited control of natural vegetation for recreational use  and deep water boating access.

3.The harvesting program is focused on controlling vegetation( including natural vegetation) to maintain safe and navigable waters. The harvester will be used to keep channels connecting the lakes open, to maintain deeper water access at back bay entrances ( and within the bays as needed as water depth allows), and  to maintain deep water access for public launches. The harvester will not be used to clear /control vegetation within 150 ft of  private residences.See point # 2 above.


If you have vegetation issues that meet the above guidelines for the harvester, please let us know so we can address the issue.

We still have over 100 members who have not paid their 2012 $40 dues. We will be re-invoicing these members to remind them about the importance of their support. So if you receive a reminder please respond promptly.


Thanks for your support!

The FLLA Board of Directors

Adopt a Pond

Dear Friends of the Lake,
   
Please consider participating in the City's "Adopt a Pond"  program designed to keep our local waters clean and attractive. This program would be a great project for an individual household or a local group such as Scouts, Church/youth groups, etc.

The following is a more detailed program description and contact information:


Adopt-A-Pond Program

Are you looking for a way to make a difference in your neighborhoods while protecting water quality? Gather a group of friends, neighbors, or family members and participate in the City of Forest Lake’s “Adopt-A-Pond” program! There are over 100 public storm water management ponds in Forest Lake that can be adopted by interested groups, businesses, and individuals. These volunteers assist in cleaning up around the ponds and make observations of pond conditions and reported developing problems to Public Works. Please consider joining them in the effort to keep Forest Lake’s water resources clean.

Interested volunteers should contact Mark Peterson (mark.peterson@ci.forest-lake.mn.us or 651-209-9729) to inquire about adoptable locations. The City will provide aerial photos of each site, trash bags, a sign to recognize your efforts, and recognition on the storm water website. Participants will be responsible for collecting litter at least 3 times each year and reporting their pond’s conditions to the Public Works Department.

Storm water ponds are designed and constructed to hold and clean storm water runoff. These ponds provide numerous benefits including:

• Control of storm water discharge rates
• Treatment of storm water pollutants through natural processes
• Reduction of flooding
• Prevention of downstream erosion
• Creation of wildlife habitat

Let me know if you would like further information.

Thanks for the interest.

Mark Peterson

Engineering Technician

Public Works Dept.

City of Forest Lake

Herbicide Treatment Update and Weed "Outlook"

Dear Friends of the Lake,

On May 9th, Lake Management, Inc.chemically treated 155 acres of the invasive species Curly Leaf Pondweed(CLP). The treatment,materials and process was done under DNR approval and protocol. A map of the treated areas on Lakes 1,2 and 3 follows:

The treated areas were selected based on  a vegetation survey conducted by the consultant Steve McComas on April 10, 2012. The Goal was  to identify the CLP beds that represented the largest potential growth. As a result of the survey, treatment was shifted from some  areas previously treated for three years(and now controlled) to new CLP beds that had never been treated. New areas treated were on the south side of Lake 3 and some new areas on the west shore of Lake 1. Steve McComas was hired by the CL-FL Watershed District, Doug Thomas, Administrator, to improve the effectiveness of the CLP treatment/control program.


WHY?
Curly Leaf Pondweed (CLP) is a nuisance invasive weed  species in Forest Lake. It grows rapidly in less than 15 ft of water to form a mat like structure near the surface.  This formation restricts boating, water skiing, swimming and jet skiing. It chokes out native weed species. It dies in early July and floats to shore just in time for your 4th of July parties! The dead CLP  releases  phosphorus that supports summer algae blooms. Its turions( seeds) can germinate up to three years later.

WEED OUTLOOK

With an early ice out and early hot weather, the weed growth will be heavy this year. Treating 155 acres of CLP is not going to solve the problem of  weeds floating onto shorelines...although it does eliminate what would have been tons of weeds from  those 155 acres! There are a number of reasons why we will still see weeds floating to shore:

1. FL has 2300 acres of water. 1500 acres are less than 15 ft deep and can support vegetation growth. The City and FLLA treated 155 acres of invasive species CLP which is only 10% of the possible vegetation.There are other untreated beds of CLP that will die and float to shore in late June including CLP that is within 150ft of shore.Our treatment program is only authorized for "open water"( ie., 150ft or farther from shore).

2.Watercraft traffic (propellers cut weeds) and fisherman( anchors dislodge weeds) can send a lot of weeds to shore on a busy weekend.
3. Two native vegetation species common to FL are Coontail and Canada Waterweed(Elodea). Both have shallow root structures and are easily dislodged by boat traffic and/or storms /wind. These species can be the source of floating weeds....especially later in the summer.

SUMMARY

Tha City and the FLLA   treat 155-170 acres of CLP each year and this eliminates tons of weeds from floating to shore in time for your July 4th party. We  also eliminate 600 lbs of phosphorus from entering the lake from the decomposed CLP. However, their are 1500 acres ( out of 2300 total)  that are less than 15ft deep and can support vegetation growth. We are not allowed nor do we want to treat/kill native vegetation. So as a result of boat traffic, storm levels, fishing activity, and shallow rooted weed species  etc.,and the direction of the prevailing summer winds, everyone will have beach weeds sometime during the summer.

We  know this doesn't solve your problem but we hope it provides some perspective on the "weed" situation.

THANKS

Special thanks to Doug Thomas and the CLFL Watershed District Board for their support of our lake improvement efforts and to the City for partnering with us to maintain this valuable community asset.  None of the programs, however, could be implemented without the financial backing of you our Lake Association members. Thank you for your continuing support.
 
The FLLA Board
Steve Schmaltz, President