Healthy Lake Grants available through the county

Healthy Lakes Grants

For those who were not able to attend our Association meeting on September 5, I wanted to briefly explain a new program sponsored by the DNR called Healthy Lakes. For those who attended the meeting, after briefly describing the Healthy Lakes program, I will address the questions that were raised at the September 5 meeting.

The Healthy Lakes program was implemented in 2014 and will continue through 2017. The goal of the program is to protect and improve the health of Wisconsin’s lakes by increasing lakeshore property owner participation in habitat restoration and runoff and erosion control projects. More specifically, lake property owners who are willing to develop/implement one of 5 targeted best practices are eligible for up to $1000 in grant monies from the DNR with a 75%/25% split (you would contribute 25% through self labor at $12/hr. or cash outlay and the DNR would reimburse you the 75%). The best practices eligible for Healthy Lakes Grants are:

• Native plantings – 350 contiguous sq.ft. near, but not necessarily along, your shoreline, owners choice;
• Runoff Diversion – for paths and driveways to divert runoff from directly entering the lake;
• Rock Infiltration – roof drip line cobbles near cabins and runoff termination rock beds; These also help protect cabins from fire.
• Rain Gardens – captures runoff to nourish plants and can either be near cabins to catch roof runoff or set back from the residence to collect water from roof, lawn, and/or
driveway areas;
• Fish Sticks – having trees dropped along a portion of your shoreline to create aquatic life habitat;

More information about the best practices described briefly above and Healthy Lakes Grants can be found at: www.healthylakeswi.com

At the Association meeting September 5, several questions came up that I will address here.
1) For those of you who are in the Preserved Natural Shoreline Program, Healthy Lakes grants would not be a problem. For instance, if someone wanted to add a wild flower bed, this could be put in on the cabin side of the 30 ft. shoreline buffer zone. Similarly, if someone wanted to do a fish sticks project, the trees could be brought in from another location during the winter and not involve cutting any trees from your buffer.
2) Dave Ferris, the Burnett County Conservationist, and Cheryl Clemens, from Harmony Environmental in Amery, will do site visits for anyone wishing to find out if their property would be appropriate for a Healthy Lakes project, and if so, which project would be best suited. These will need to occur in late October through early November so that they can be completed before the ground becomes snow-covered.




Please look at the Healthy Lakes web site, consider the possibility of participating and let me know by no later than October 21 if you would like Dave and Cheryl to visit you property to see which, if any, best practice would be recommended for your property. Some of the site visits will undoubtedly happen during the workweek when you may not be at your cabin, but I will accompany them and will take notes on their recommendations that I will communicate back to you.

Timetable: September 27-October 21 decide if you are interested in participating in
the Health Lakes Grants and let Bob Baker know if you would like a site visit
from Dave Ferris and Cheryl Clemens by October 21.

Early October -November 16 site visits to determine which best practice, if
any, would be appropriate for your property. Site visits will likely begin as
soon a sufficient number of Lipsett property owners indicate their interest in
participating in Health Lakes grants.

Early January Bob Baker and Tom Boehne will submit the Healthy Lakes
Grant proposal to the DNR.

February I should know the outcome of the grant proposal and will notify all
participants for the results.

Thank you.

Bob Baker
Lake Management Chair