Manistee Lake Association Meeting Eli Baker Education and Outreach - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Manistee Lake Association Meeting

Eli Baker Education and Outreach Specialist Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council

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The Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council speaks for Northern Michigan's waters. We are dedicated to protecting our lakes, streams, wetlands, and groundwater through respected advocacy, innovative education, technically sound water quality monitoring, thorough research and restoration actions. We achieve our mission by empowering others and we believe in the capacity to make a positive difference. We work locally, regionally and throughout the Great Lakes Basin to achieve our goals.

Our Mission

www.watershedcouncil.org

“ “

Sound Science. Respected Advocacy. Innovative Education.

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Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council's service area includes the water resources in Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, and Emmet Counties. Water resources in our service area includes:

• More than 2,500 miles of rivers and streams
• Multiple blue-ribbon trout streams
• 14 lakes larger than 1,000 acres

(among the largest in the State)

• 38 lakes between 100 - 1,000 acres
• 184 lakes between 10 - 100 acres
• 1,600 lakes that are less than 10 acres
• 363,998 acres of wetlands

Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council

Our Service Area

www.watershedcouncil.org

National Lake Assessment Results and the Importance of Natural Shorelines What is the Score the Shore Survey? Manistee Lake Results What can you do to improve your score? Michigan Shoreland Stewards

Presentation

Overview

The National Lakes Assessment (NLA) is a statistical survey of the condition of our nation's lakes, ponds, and reservoirs. It is designed to provide information on the extent of lakes that support healthy biological condition and recreation, estimate how widespread major stressors are that impact lake quality, and provide insight into whether lakes nationwide are getting cleaner.

National Lakes Assessment

The NLA is designed to answer the following questions about lakes across the United States.

• What is the current biological, chemical, physical and recreational condition of lakes?
• What is the extent of degradation among lakes?
• Is degradation widespread (e.g., national) or localized (e.g., regional)?
• Is the condition of lakes getting better, worse, or staying the same over time?
• Which environmental stressors are most associated with degraded biological

condition in lakes?

National Lakes Assessment

• 1. Nutrient pollution was not a widespread stressor. La

Lake h habit itat co comple lexity, r riparia ian vege egetation c cover er, , an and m d mer ercury i in l lak ake‐bot

• ttom
• m sediment

nt we were t the m most wi widespr pread stresso ssors. s.

• 2. Microcystin and chlorophyll‐a concentrations, and cyanobacteria cell counts were generally lower

than the levels of concern established by the World Health Organization.

• 3. The herbicide atrazine was detected in 13% of lakes, and concentrations never exceeded the United

States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) level of concern for plants in freshwater or state water quality standards

• 4. Based on macroinvertebrate communities, 52% of lakes were estimated to be in the most disturbed

condition, compared to 17% based on zooplankton communities. The 2012 NLA results hi highlig ight t the he ne need f for

• r pr

prog

• grams t

tha hat enc ncou

• urage r

riparian a and nd s shor horeli line protection,

• n,

impr provement nt, a and r restor

• ration t
• n to impr

prove a and maint ntain i n inland nd lake wa water q

• quality. M

Michi higan n cur urrently ha has several pr l prog

• grams f

foc

• cused on
• n shor

horelin line q qua ualit

• ity. The NLA also highlights the need for actions that lead to

a reduction of mercury in inland lakes. Many inland water bodies in Michigan are impacted by mercury and have fish consumption advisories.

Michigan NLA Results

The Importance of Natural Shorelines

• Helps keep the lake clean by slowing and filtering runoff as it moves towards the lake.
• Allows more water to be absorbed into the ground than runoff.

• Provides needed shade for keeping the water cooler.
• Protects the lake edge from wave and ice erosion when there is a good mixture of native plants

both on the land and in the water.

• Provides habitat for birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fish

High Impac t De ve lo pme nt

Re moving Natur al Shor e line s?

Ye s – the r e ar e c onse que nc e s

The practice of

hardening shorelines with

rock rip rap and vertical sea walls has resulted in the cumulative loss of shoreline and littoral zone habitat on MI inland lakes.

(O’Neal and Soulliere, 2006)

Natural Shoreline Landscapes on MI Inland Lakes Workshop for Property Owners Chapter 2: Understanding the Shoreline

Seawalls

• Barrier for animal

movement

• Creates scouring

effect

• Wave flanking

Impacts on wildlife

• Loss of habitat for

fish and wildlife

• Woody debris
• Vegetation
• Loss of shade
• Loss of root

structure Geese love it!

Chemical impacts of shoreline development

In freshwater aquatic systems 1 unit of phosphorus can produce 500 times its weight in algae. (Wetzel, l, Lim imnolo logy, , 2nd 2nd Edit itio ion)

How to tell if your lake is healthy?

MICorps Score the Shore Survey

The Michigan Clean Water Corps (MiCorps; https://micorps.net) statewid ide v volu lunt nteer monit monitorin ing p prog

• gram recently added this parameter.

Lake associations, lake residents, and local governments can volunteer to protect high quality shorelines and to be aware of degraded shorelines that could benefit from improvements.

What is the Survey?

The process:

• starts by taking an aerial map of your lake and dividing it into 1000 foot

sections.

• Volunteers assess each section separately to provide a section score.
• at the end, a whole lake score is defined on a 0-100 scale.

Volunteers look at:

• the number of docks and homes.
• the percent of aquatic vegetation.
• terrestrial vegetation.
• erosion control practices.

Higher scores are calculated in sections with larger ger percen entag ages es of submerge ged o

• r emer

ergen gent v veget etat ation as wel ell as as sh shoreline v vege egetation since these are important habitat for fish, birds, amphibians, and

• ther animals. In addition, less i

ss imper ervious s surfac aces es and wider er v veget etat ation buffer ers b s between een m mai aintai ained lawns an and d the e wat ater’s edg edge help preserve water quality by limiting erosion and slowing rain runoff.

Manistee Lake Results

The Score the Shore Survey of Manistee Lake was completed on August 30, 2017 in accordance with MiCorps guidelines.

• 30 individual survey sites were established around the lake that encompassed about

5.7 miles of shoreline.

With the exception to the low-lying wetlands along the northwest end of the lake, much of the Manistee Lake shoreline is developed. Currently, 248 homes and 246 docks border the lake proper, which equates to an average development density of 16.5 structures per 1,000 feet.

Manistee Lake has an overall Sho hore S Score of

• f 55

55 with about 50% 50% of

• f Manistee

Lake ke shor horeland rated poo

• or, abo

bout 33% 33% fair, and nd 17% 17% good

• od.

Most of the disturbed shoreland areas occur along developed shoreline areas. Thes ese e data ta sugges est t that t ther ere is a need eed t to both pr pres eserve e and res esto tore e natu tural l shor horeland habi bitat around

• und Mani

nistee Lake.

Become a Michigan Shoreland Steward!

What can be done?

• 6. Don’t mow to the water’s edge. Instead, allow a strip of

natural vegetation (i.e., a greenbelt) to become established along your waterfront. A greenbelt will trap pollutants and discourage nuisance geese from frequenting your property.

• 7. Infiltrate drainage from your downspouts rather than

letting it flow overland to the lake.

• 8. Don’t dump anything in area wetlands. Wetlands are

natural purifiers.

• 9. Have your septic tank pumped every 2 to 3 years.
• 10. Don’t be complacent—our collective actions will make or

break the lake!

• 1. Don’t use lawn fertilizer or weed killer.
• 2. Help prevent the spread of invasive species! If you trailer

your boat from lake to lake, wash your boat and trailer before launching back into Manistee Lake.

• 3. Water the lawn sparingly to avoid washing nutrients and

sediments into the lake.

• 4. Don’t feed ducks and geese near the lake. Waterfowl

droppings are high in nutrients and may cause swimmer’s itch.

• 5. Don’t burn leaves and grass clippings near the shoreline.

Nutrients concentrate in the ash and can easily wash into the lake

Michigan Shoreland Stewards program

• Michigan Natural Shoreline Partnership

partnered with Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council to create the Michigan Natural Shorland Stewards Program

• Th

The e MI MI Shore horeland Stewa wards P Progr gram provides es " "Educ ucation a

• n and R

Recog

• gni

nition

• n". It i

is designed ned t to:

• Provide recognition for inland lake property
• wners for using best management practices to

protect their lake.

• Encourage inland lake property owners to use

natural shoreland landscaping techniques and erosion control.

• Provide educational resources to help manage a

property for a healthy lake.

Property breakdown

Levels available

• Go

Gold: d: A property at this level will have the most natural of conditions with high levels of natural vegetation with very little lawn.

• Silver

er: : A property at this level will have high levels of natural vegetation and will not have a seawall. Though there may be more lawn than at the Gold level.

• Bronze:

e: A property at this level may or may not have a seawall. This property will have natural vegetation but may also have more lawn than a property at the silver or gold levels.

• Start

rter: r: Each property is different and some may not qualify for a certificate until some management practices are improved.

Registering your property

• To register: name, address, county, lake name, property

width and depth, and lake association

• Registered Participants receive:
• Customized Certificate
• Suggestions on how to improve property/score
• Links to more information on natural shorelines

Survey overview

 Participants able to take

survey anonymously or as a registered participant

 38 questions on the

survey

 Survey information is

saved only for registered participants

 Participants may register

at any time during the survey

Survey end information

 Able to review

answers and explanations

 Print out a list of

answers and areas for improvement

 Photo upload

Certificates and signs

 Free certificate is generated at the end of the

survey

• Color corresponds to participant’s level

 Signs available for purchase:

• Size:

ze: 12" x 6" with 2 holes drilled Co Cost: t: $20

• Size

ze: 16" x 8" with 4 holes drilled Co Cost: t: $28

• Size:

ze: 24" x 12" with 4 holes drilled Co Cost: t: $38

 Material: .080" aluminum panel  Decorated with a digital print with UV laminate.  Border Color: There are 3 different border

colors: Gold, Silver and Bronze to correspond to your specific level.

Finding Help

• Michigan Shoreland Stewards Program offers access to

resources for stewards who are looking to improve their property via the Mi Michi higan N n Natural S Shorel eline P e Partner ershi hip

• Michigan Natural Shoreline Partnership:
• List of MNSP Certified Natural Shoreline Professionals
• Information on permitting
• Lists of native plants and where to plant them on your

property http: p://www.misho horel elinep nepartner ershi hip. p.org/

Progress to Date

• Over 4

450 50 parti tici ciapants ts

• 124 g

24 gold

• 131 s

31 silver er

• 108 b

bronze

• nze
• 18+ m

8+ miles es of shorel eline s surveyed ed

• 22 r

22 regi egistered l lak ake ass associations

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Eli Eli Bak Baker

Education and Outreach Specialist

Phone: 231.347.1181 eli@watershedcouncil.org Tip Tip of

• f the

he M Mitt W Watershed C Counc

• uncil

il 426 Bay Street Petoskey, MI 49770 www.Instagram.com/tipofthemittwatershed www.facebook.com/watershe hedcou

• unc

ncil il www.watershedcouncil.org/videos

ww www.watershedcou

• unc

ncil. il.org

Thank You