NALMS Notes - June, 2007
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By the time you read this, I will be on my way back from the most rejuvenating vacation I could think up: rafting the Grand Canyon end to end. Aside from being on the water, there is no cell phone or internet service in the Canyon, and we get to spend a day in Las Vegas at each end of the trip. I tried to talk the family into a side visit to Las Vegas wash, recipient of all that sewage and runoff, but they were not enthused. I probably will get a few algae samples for Ann St. Amand, but that’s fun to me. When I get back, I will be doing some field work almost right away in northern NH, which I also find rejuvenating. So the start of summer is looking very good to me right now. What rejuvenates you? For many of you reading this, rejuvenation is synonymous with time spent on, by or in the water at your favorite lake. There truly is something rejuvenating about being at the lake. So many poets, authors and musicians have tried to capture the feeling in prose or tune, but it is still elusive. It may be different things to different people: lapping waves, cool water, a gorgeous reflected sunset, the call of the loon, the splash of the bass or trout on a line, or the roar of the motor. Each is special to many, although they often can’t be enjoyed at the same time or even the same lake. Lakes offer us such diversity of experiences, such variety of enjoyment, and such a plethora of opportunities. We are fortunate to have them, but we should not take lakes or the experience they offer for granted. In many ways, NALMS is like the lakes it seeks to improve and protect. It is an organization comprised of people with many different backgrounds and interests. Defining a NALMS member is not much easier than defining the qualities of lakes that make them so special to us. We are drawn together by an initial desire to learn or do something for our lakes, but when you have been involved with NALMS for awhile, you find that the bond is much deeper but still hard to define. Like lakes, NALMS means different things to different people, but hopefully it gives us all satisfaction to be a part of a movement to manage a resource that needs our help and gives us so much in return. A lot of us find rejuvenation in our NALMS activities, most assuredly at the annual symposium and Affiliate conferences, but sometimes we need a break from the planning, the committee work, and the professional interactions. Sometimes it is nice to just kick back at the lake and let life happen; for NALMS and me right now, that means rafting down the Colorado River with family and friends and not worrying about what Glen Canyon Dam has done to river ecology, what kind of algae I just swallowed in that last rapid, and doubling down in Vegas without considering how close the contents of Las Vegas wash are getting to the drinking water intake. I hope you can take some time on the water this summer to rejuvenate; we all need it. And when you are refreshed, get out their and recruit some more NALMS members; we need that too!
Ken Wagner NALMS is now accepting nominations for the positions of President Elect (1 yr as Pres-Elect, 1 yr as Pres, and 1 yr as Past-Pres), Treasurer (2 years), and Director for Regions I, III, V, and IX. Position descriptions and the general announcement are on the web at www.NALMS.org. We are especially interested in candidates with business, marketing, and organizational management experience, but the primary qualification is a strong interest in protecting and improving lakes and a willingness to serve actively. The deadline for open nominations is the end of July. Each time we send out NALMS Notes and issues of LakeLine and the journal, we receive dozens of notifications regarding outdated addresses. To save staff time and reduce mailing costs, we’ve started excluding accounts that receive these notices from future mailings. Please visit the My Account page to verify the information we have on file. A thoroughly revised version of this popular publication has been produced through a grant from the USEPA and is available on the NALMS website. Chapters can be downloaded as pdf files. This is a must-read document for anyone working with stormwater, and is a great addition to our free publication list. The authors give you the benefit of many years of experience in the field, and NALMS reviewers helped make this a user-friendly and technically excellent source of storm water management information. Take a look today; we think you will be impressed, and are proud to bring this to you. NALMS presents awards annually to outstanding projects, volunteers, researchers and corporations at our Awards Ceremony at the annual symposium, which is in Orlando at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort on November 1st. Our highest award, the Secchi Disk Award, is given to an individual for depth of service and clarity of vision (and not because we think they would look good at the end of a rope!). Nominations are now sought and should be submitted by September 15th. See the summer issue of LakeLine or our website for more details but think seriously about who should be honored this year for their contributions to lake management. Here is a list of the different categories: Secchi Disk Award – bestowed upon the individual member considered to have contributed the most to the achievement of NALMS’s goals. Outstanding Corporation Award – given to the corporation considered to have contributed the most to the of NALMS’s goal Friends of NALMS Award – awarded to individuals or corporations making major contributions to NALMS. Recipients do not have to be NALMS members, and “contributions” extend beyond monetary donations. Technical Merit Awards – this award may be selected from four categories
Any individual or organization may make nominations for these awards. To submit a nomination please provide the following information on the enclosed form:
Please send the information to Marty Kelly (Awards Committee Co-chair) at marty.kelly@swfwmd.state.fl.us or by phone at (352) 796-7211. The NALMS Image Library is looking good and more images are on the way, but we can handle yet more. Do you have a great shot of a lake, lake assessment technique, or lake management effort? Anything that clearly illustrates any aspect of lake management is welcome. And for our corporate members, your products certainly qualify; if you have a picture of your products and staff in action, we are interested in having it in the image library. NALMS is seeking a dedicated and motivated Executive Director with demonstrated leadership, organization development, and financial skills. Since 1980, NALMS has been forging partnerships among citizens, scientists, and professionals to foster sound management and protection of lakes and reservoirs for today and tomorrow. Lake management is viewed within a watershed context reaching beyond lakes to include land use, streams, wetlands and even estuaries. An annual symposium, quarterly magazine and professional journal extend lake management information to its members and others interested in lakes. NALMS is a 501 (c) 3 membership organization based in Madison, Wisconsin with an international Board of Directors. The primary responsibilities of the Executive Director are to accomplish the organization’s vision and strategic direction, to raise and manage funds, to develop and expand membership, to supervise staff and support the Board of Directors, and to oversee programs and day-to-day operations. Please visit www.nalms.org for a detailed position description and other organizational information. Desired qualifications include at least five years of proven leadership experience in a comparable organization; a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, business, organizational development or public/non-profit administration (Master’s preferred); experience with personnel and office management; excellent written and verbal communication skills with audiences of varied backgrounds and interests. Some travel required, salary and relocation expenses negotiable. NALMS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. To apply, please email resume, salary history and four professional references to Dick Osgood by July 27, 2007. Inquiries may be made to Dick Osgood or Sharon Anderson. Please do not make inquiries to the NALMS office. An interim management team has been finalizing the Affiliate Council structure for the past couple of months. It has been sent out to all Affiliate contacts and has been submitted to NALMS. One of the major components of the council is opening up a seat on the NALMS board to represent the Affiliates. This addition to the NALMS board requires a vote at this coming November’s annual business meeting in Orlando. The point of this council is to provide a direct linkage from all affiliates and affiliate members to the NALMS organization. NALMS doesn’t want it to just be a name change from chapters to affiliates. Affiliates will now have a great way to communication to NALMS about issues, management projects, membership ideas, and also communicate amongst fellow affiliates. Communication is key for any relationship, just as your significant other. Please go to the NALMS website and read over the proposed Affiliate Council Structure Plan. Send any comment you have to NALMS. Affiliates have full control over how this council will function and how successful it will be. If you are an Affiliate, please participate in this process. We are experiencing an upswing in virtually all membership categories, but want more! Want to win a free registration for the Orlando symposium? Disney tickets? Dinner with Ken Wagner? – 2 dinners with Ken if you don’t get recruiting! Every time you recruit a new member we will put your name in the NALMS “lake”, from which we will fish the winners in early September. We want to reach 2000 by the end of October, and need your help. Given the website content, quality of our publications, and the nature of our mission, you can be proud to ask people to join. Eight grant proposals were submitted by various groups/entities from RI, PA (3), IA, NY, OH, and NH. From these eight projects, three winners were selected. They are:
Thank you to the members of the review team that spent time reading and ranking these proposals: Alicia Carlson (NH), Jean Jacoby (WA), Jason Smith (PA), Don Kretchmer (NH), and Frank Brown (PA).
We’re cruising now! The Florida Host Committee is on top of things, the program is shaping up, and Disney magic will permeate our social events. Hans Pearl will speak at the opening plenary about harmful algal blooms in a changing world, and EPA Water Administrator Ben Grumbles has been invited. Major Sessions on algal bloom dynamics and impacts, boating management, and minimum flows and water level regulation are planned. Registration is now open on-line, exhibitor sign ups are well ahead of the normal pace, and we have just released the updated, Orlando-specific sponsorship opportunity list. We have left the on-line abstract submission process open but can’t promise space for anything but posters at this point. However, with our intent to devote an entire session just to posters, we would like a lot of good ones for this showcase event. Start planning your costume, as the Exhibitors Reception will also be a Halloween Party – for big and little kids! If you are stumped, Ken Wagner and Steve Lundt recently toured the Denver Metro Wastewater Facility and got some great ideas! A number of NALMS members face the dilemma of whether or not to bring their teenagers to Disney with them for the NALMS Symposium in October and November. Those of you involved in the management of NALMS face the same dilemma, and a number of us concluded awhile back that we would bring them but look for some educational opportunities, not just give them the week to play, since they are missing school. It took some time to sort it all out, but we have an option called YES – Youth Education Series – that looks very promising. We tentatively narrowed the choices to the following:
Each of these programs is about 3 hours long and runs in the morning, typically starting between 7:30 and 9 AM. Most involve a Disney attraction before the park opens, with such things as Space Mountain, the Haunted Mansion and Mission: SPACE used to illustrate principles. A chaperone is needed for the group (10 or more), and we can have one chaperone for each 5-10 youth, so some parents can enjoy this as well. To get into the program, we need to sign up in advance, then have participants purchase a park admission with YES option. The actual cost of the programs after the initial park pass is obtained is only $23, and the basic park pass is also discounted, so this is a pretty good deal. So, if you would like to enroll your teenagers in this program for October 30 or 31, November 1 or 2 with a NALMS group, email Darcy Brown at the NALMS office and we will keep a running list. Give Darcy the number of spaces you want in which programs; you can pick four choices for the four days. We will then work with the Disney staff to set up the best possible schedule to meet stated needs and get back to everyone for an official sign up. It is important, however, that you not purchase park passes before the decision is made – it is apparently not a simple matter of adding the YES option to an already purchased pass. We will want your input by August 15th. An annual event for about two decades, Lakes Appreciation Month extends throughout July. The NALMS poster, designed by 6th grader John Shin of Virginia, the winner of the poster competition, is especially attractive this year and will make a great shirt! Copies of the poster have been shipped; contact Amy Smagula of the Education and Outreach Committee if you need some. In the meantime, plan an event to celebrate your lake! Cookouts, regattas, fishing derbies, races, and various parties are all fun at the lake but try to sneak in some education too. It is a wonderful opportunity to get people involved in the Great American Secchi Dip In or to advance a volunteer monitoring program for your lake. And don’t forget the NALMS brochures!
With the help of the NALMS affiliate, Colorado Lake & Reservoir Management Association (CLRMA), the Barr Lake & Milton Reservoir Watershed Association, the Colorado State Parks, and many other sponsors, the State of Colorado celebrated their largest Lakes Appreciation Month event ever. Over 300 volunteers combed the 9-mile shoreline of Barr Lake, a 1,800-acre reservoir located 20 miles northeast of downtown Denver, to collect trash and debris that has floated in over the years from the South Platte River. This reservoir has had a very rich and rough history for the past 116 years. Starting out in the late 1880’s as a ritzy, recreational spot, the once buffalo wallow became an oasis for the up-scaled Denverites. Then, by the 1950’s and after doubling in size, Barr Lake had the wonderful title as the nation’s largest in-land sewage lagoon. All thanks to the nutrient-rich runoff from the quickly-expanding Denver area. Now, after the modernization of the wastewater treatment system and other improvements in the watershed, Barr Lake is once again an oasis for lake lovers as well as over 300 species of birds. The Lake Appreciation Month celebrations planned for Barr Lake focused on a shoreline clean up. With the recruitment of 90 Americorp volunteers, 70 boy scouts and parents, and another 140 lake-loving volunteers, Barr Lake was defiantly pampered this July. Other events on the lake included, water quality monitoring tours, North American Dip-In with the director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, over $500 worth of give-aways from local sponsors such as Bass Pro Shop, Cabela’s, Starbucks, Clif Bar, Eldorado Natural Spring Water, and Disk’s Sporting Goods, event t-shirts, educational booths, free canoeing classes on the water, ride-alongs with Park Rangers, self-guided boat tours, face painting, free BBQ for all volunteers, and the opportunity to slow down and just enjoy the beauty of the reservoir. CLRMA challenges any other affiliate out there to top this one. Planning group is already meeting for next year’s event.
Gina has been active in NALMS for close to 20 years as part of the Aquarius staff, although we won’t accuse her of having matured over that time. As shown, she received flowers and balloons at work on her big day. Decorum prevents us from mentioning her specific age, but it is an important anniversary of her 30th birthday (and is visible on the balloons). Gina handles a lot of the exhibition arrangements for the annual NALMS Symposium each year, making her an experienced exhibitionist. At her age, that is quite an accomplishment! Congratulations on the milestone, Gina. The USEPA announced in June that it has released a draft list of 73 pesticides to be evaluated under the first phase of its endocrine disruptor screening program. The draft list of compounds were selected for screening based on high potential for exposure relative to people or the environment, and not on expected endocrine disruption effects. The purpose of the screening will be to determine if the pesticides can adversely influence the endocrine system. The endocrine disruptor screening program, mandated under the Food Quality Protection Act, will use validated tests to determine effects on the endocrine system. The screening program consists of two phases: Tier 1 tests are meant to determine whether a given chemical may be an endocrine disruptor, while the more extensive Tier 2 tests will generate data suitable for risk assessment purposes. The draft list of pesticides will be published soon in the Federal Register. Additional information on EPA’s screening plan and a pre-publication copy of the draft list is available at www.epa.gov/endo/index.htm. Stevens Water is excited to announce the opening of their new head office and manufacturing facility in Portland, Oregon. Located near the Portland International Airport, their new location will allow Stevens to continue to expand in the coming years. Please take note of their new location and phone numbers and update your records accordingly:
Stevens Water Monitoring Systems, Inc. Stevens Water Monitoring Systems designs and manufactures equipment and systems for reliable monitoring, collection, analysis and control of water conditions. The company's technology enables measurement of water level, water quality, groundwater, soil conditions, and weather conditions. Stevens also provides proven products for certified wireless transmission of environmental data, from short-range Bluetooth technology to long-range GEO and LEO satellite communications solutions. (www.stevenswater.com) How many of you around the States are up to your neck in state nutrient criteria development? EPA, since 1998, has been working on developing nutrient standards across the country and many of the states are heavily involved. Only a hand full of states (actually islands and territories) have completed their nutrient standards – e.g. Hawaii, Guam, and American Samoa. We still have a long way to go. If you are not Hawaii, Guam, or American Samoa, then there is a great resource for nutrient criteria develop from Tetratech. The Nutrient Scientific Technical Exchange Partnership & Support (N-STEPS) center (n-steps.tetratech-ffx.com) is a "One Stop Shop" for National, Regional, and local nutrient criteria development. The types of assistance available from N-STEPS include:
From the N-STEPS website you can also gain access to the free webcasts that focus on the different aspects of developing nutrient standards. The most recent webcast was July 11th, and it focused on statistical procedures in helping with the development of standards. This is a great website where digital images can be organized. What is unique about this site though and can be useful for lake management is that it includes “geotagging”. Geotagging is where you include lat/longs with your photo so you know where it was taken. For example, I searched in their dataset for Lake Tahoe and 93,733 images came up and most included coordinates. This site requires a free sign up and can be a great way to manage your images or get images of your lake. They have 2.2 million images to search through. See if your lake has its picture in there. Maybe you will find Ken rafting the big ones in the Canyon. Aquatic weeds are already a serious problem for many of California’s waterways, but preventing the introduction of new invasives is important for all of them. According to Mike Kraft, a group of community leaders at Fallen Leaf Lake have devised a boat wash program in order to slow or prevent the growth of unwanted exotic plant and animal species at the lake. Kraft said that Eurasian watermilfoil, curly-leaf pondweed, and New Zealand mud snails are the prime invasive species targeted by their boat wash program. “These types of species pose a major threat to the healthy ecosystem currently enjoyed at Fallen Leaf Lake, “said Kraft. If one or more of these invasive species were to establish, it could have a dramatic impact on the lake’s wildlife, including lake minnows, cutthroat trout, Mackinaw trout, crayfish, ducks, Canada geese, and American bullfrogs. These aquatic invaders could also impede recreation and would be extremely costly to eliminate. The program will be operated by the boat launch/marina manager and will require boaters to wash their vessels, trailers, and engine components prior to entering the lake. A holding tank will capture the water from the wash and will distribute it to an existing leach field where any invasive species will be unable to survive. Fallen Leaf Lake area residents have generously donated all equipment and labor for the boat wash. Hopefully, the program can prevent unwanted foreign species from taking hold at Fallen Leaf Lake, and can serve as a model for preventing weed introductions into other California aquatic environments. If you are having a conference, a lake-related question, need advice, looking for similar lake problems/solutions, have an interesting story to share, are selling something, or just want to be heard throughout NALMS, please send your material to Steve Lundt at slundt@mwrd.dst.co.us. All e-newsletter material is due to Steve Lundt by the first Friday of each month to be considered for inclusion in that month’s e-newsletter. |
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