Tag: shoreline management

Vanishing natural shorelines hurt lake quality

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Image of the front cover of the report

In June 2022, Paul Radomski from the MN DNR presented the ideas from this newly released paper at our MN COLA Annual meeting. This was one of the sessions in our Lake Resiliency series.

Now the Vanishing Natural Shorelines paper has been published and you can read the whole story of how the loss of natural shorelines contributes to the degrading of lake quality. Tom Nelson, MN COLA Secretary and Itasca County SWCD Board member, was a key contributor from MN COLA. We encourage you to read and disseminate this document.

As Steve Kloiber from the MN DNR has written: “The Minnesota Natural Shoreline Partnership was formed around the idea that regulatory approaches to shoreland protection have not been sufficient to stop the loss of natural shoreland. This group has chosen to focus on the idea that there is a need to change social norms around how people think of their shoreline.”

We should individually and collectively do everything we can to stop the loss of natural shorelines and reclaim lost shorelines. Let’s change the social norm so natural shorelines are preferred.

Michigan Fisheries Division releases report on wake impacts

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The Fisheries Division of the Michigan DNR released a literature review and recommendations regarding the effects of wake boats on aquatic habitat. An earlier version sparked controversy and it was relabeled as a draft. This July, the final report was released.

Recommendations in the report were couched as “voluntary best operating practices in support of the continued use of wake boats while minimizing the effects on natural resources. Their recommendations are copied below:

  1. Boats operating in wake-surfing mode or wake-boarding mode, during which boat speed, wave shapers, and/or ballast are used to increase wave height, are recommended to operate at least 500 feet from docks or the shoreline, regardless of water depth.
  2. Boats operating in wake-surfing or wake-boarding modes are recommended to operate in water at least 15 feet deep.
  3. Ballast tanks should be completely drained prior to transporting the watercraft over land.

Further, the Michigan report “recommended that awareness and voluntary adoption of these best operating practices be encouraged through outreach actions and materials to educate wake boat operators.”

Updates from MN COLA’s Annual Meeting

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Our Annual Meeting in Little Falls last week was a great success with terrific speakers and insightful discussions! Over 30 people joined us for our first in-person meeting since late 2019.

As a follow-up to the meeting, we have attached two items for your use:

  • Draft minutes from the meeting (these will be approved at our September meeting)
  • An update on the 2023 Legislative Session from Jeff Forester of Minnesota Lakes and River’s Advocates

At the meeting we unanimously elected 7 new members to the MN COLA Board for 3-year terms, and we are excited to have a full complement of 15 Directors! Our Board Members and their term are listed here. Note that terms end in June of the noted year.

  • Blaine Barkley – 2024
  • Jan Believeau – 2024
  • Biz Clark – 2026
  • Kevin Farnum – 2024
  • Jeff Forester – 2026
  • Steve Frawley – 2026
  • Lynn Goodrich – 2025
  • Jim Gray – 2026
  • David Helgerson – 2024
  • Kathy Jonsrud – 2025
  • Jim Kutzner – 2025
  • Tom Nelson – 2025
  • Ruth Schaefer – 2025
  • Joe Shneider – 2024
  • Tom Watson – 2026

We noted we were doing a “last call” for the 2023 Communications Survey. If you haven’t yet taken the survey, it would be great if you could carve out a few minutes to do it.

Join us at MN COLA’s Annual Meeting… In person!

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We are excited to have out first in-person MN COLA meeting since December 2019 (pre-COVID)! The meeting is from 10 am to 3 pm in Little Falls, MN at the offices of the Initiative Foundation. A box lunch will be provided for $10. We ask that you register for the meeting so that we can plan the room seating and to get a count on lunches needed.

Click on More information below for the agenda and information about our speakers.

Our Annual Member Meeting promises to be content rich and an exciting opportunity to meet in person.

The agenda includes the all-important Legislative Update. Jeff Forester of Minnesota Lakes and River’s Advocates will be there to share details of what happened and what it means for protecting Minnesota’s public waters. Three important items on the MN COLA Legislative Agenda were being addressed this session:

  • Stable funding for MAISRC (the AIS Research Center at the University of Minnesota);
  • Watercraft Operator’s License;
  • Improved funding for AIS treatments.

We are thrilled to have author Ted Rulseh as our lunch speaker. His most recent book, Ripple Effects: How we’re loving our lakes to death, will be featured. It provides a history of how our lifestyle changes and upward mobility have increased the demands we place on our lakes in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Rulseh addresses the reasons behind our vanishing natural shorelines and other impacts to lake life.

After lunch, Greg Berg, from the Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District will continue our focus on shoreline management with “boots on the ground” experiences that can help guide shoreline property owners and associations. Greg has been actively involved with the collaborative work (with MN COLA, MLR, the DNR, BWSR, the U of MN, and other organizations) on natural shorelines that Paul Radomski presented to MN COLA last summer. His talks are always informative!

To round out the agenda, we will end with our signature Round Robin session where you can share what’s happening on your lake or river, in your association, or in your COLA or LARA.

Registration is free; and there is an option to have a box lunch for $10. We hope to see you there and please register today!

Shoreline Living booklet Volume 2 is now available

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The Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership is proud to share two volumes of its Shoreline Living series, which provide examples of everyday shoreline property owners that dipped their toes into rehabilitating or protecting a natural shoreline.

There’s something magical about spending time at a lake, whether you’re swimming, boating, fishing, or just sitting and listening to the lapping waves. There are simple steps property owners can take to keep their lakes clean and healthy for generations to come. The Shoreline Living series shares the examples of ordinary property owners who have done something extraordinary. Each is taking steps in their own way to do their part to care for the lake. From small steps to rehabilitate a relatively manicured property to protecting an almost fully forested and natural landscape, the articles within feature the efforts of people just like you.

Read More…

2nd Tier developments discussed at MN COLA’s September Membership meeting

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Trying to stuff ten pounds of something into a two-pound bag? That’s the approach of 2nd Tier Developers. Continuing on with MN COLA’s focus on Lake Resiliency, attorney Tim Keane discusses the impacts of 2nd Tier developments on lakes and rivers. Tim describes what they are and why you should care.

Click here to watch the video.