Lake Improvement Association Minutes
1/07/07
The January 7 meeting was called to order by President Bill Ringo with the pledge of allegiance to the flag - secretary and treasurer's reports from December meeting were approved as read.
Jeff Vossler reports from the Political Action Committee that Ohio's new Governor Ted Strickland has appointed Sean Logan new Chief of Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources. A packet outlining funding requests and other issues affecting Grand Lake will soon be mailed to both these offices.
Tom Rampe, Technical Advisor, reports he will be attending a meeting in Columbus of the Natural Resources Conservation Service on January 11. He shared information from the Board of Health meeting he attended earlier this week announcing new rules governing septic tank installation as of January 1 requiring proper engineering for each individual location. Congratulations to Tom for having been elected Mercer County rep to the board of trustees of the newly-formed West Central Ohio Land Conservancy, a partnership formed to preserve, protect and conserve natural and cultural resources and other land and water resources in a 7-county area of west central Ohio.
Teresa May, Grand Lake/Wabash Watershed Alliance Coordinator, gave a PowerPoint presentation on new protocol for reporting alleged violations of guidelines for wintertime manure application. This protocol was developed to facilitate adherence to standard 633 created by the USDA's NRCS (see above). The form for reporting violations may be obtained by calling Teresa May at 419-586-3289 or on the Soil & Water Conservation District website.
Craig Morton, Park Manager, puts lake level at 18" above pool. Four sediment traps have been placed in tributaries to the lake, with a fifth to be constructed in the next week or so. These traps are placed in an area that has been dug out in the bottom of a stream; they then capture sediment and attached nutrients before they enter the lake. Volunteers are needed to monitor these traps a few times a year . . . to go out in small boats and measure the depth of sediment to see if they need to be cleaned out, etc. Stepping up to this were Larry Poppe, Jeff Vossler and Herb Richey - thanks guys! (another volunteer is still needed). The dredge material relocation area at Liette Field is being torn down; there were three deer trapped in the mud, but they were released - mud-caked and unharmed. A waste oil burner has been obtained to heat the maintenance building at the park; waste oil is needed to operate it - call the park office at 419-394-3611 to donate or bring it in (no gasoline in it).
The L.I.A. complimentary ticket to the Pheasants Forever banquet January 27 was won by Bob & Deb Hoersting. The 50/50 raffle was won by Sharon Galbreath who donated it to the Kids Fishing Derby.
Lake Restoration Committee meets the 3rd Monday of each month - Come on out to a meeting!!
Jeff has done a great job of lining up some interesting and worthwhile programs:
January 15 - Dr. Robert Hiskey, Assoc. Prof. Of Biology, WSU: Future Health of Grand Lake
February 19 - Jim Heinrich & Jay Smith, West Central Ohio Land Conservancy: Introduction
March 19 - John Smith, OSU Extension Office: Best Management Practices for Watershed residents
April 16 - T.J. Place, Auglaize County Soil & Water: Field Tiles and Drainage
