MLR has partnered with Jay Gustafson, aka "Waterway Jay." After paddeling the Mississippi from Itasca to the Gulf of Mexico, Jay decided to paddle every River in Minnesota in an effort to raise awareness. Follow Jay's progress and get involved in protecting Minnesota's Rivers.
In a first for the state of Minnesota, Wright County has established a regional watercraft decontamination and inspection program.
From open water until ice in, 2018, if you wish to launch a watercraft into Lake Sylvia (east and west), Lake John, or
Pleasant Lake in Wright County, a free entrance inspection is required. The regional inspection/decontamination site is located at 1300 Business Blvd in Annandale, MN and is open sunup to sundown. Inspection typically takes less than 5 minutes and decontamination, if required, is free.
Lake Associations are the largest (more than 200K), most generous ($6.2 million annually), most dedicated (1.2 million volunteer hours annually) conservation group in Minnesota. But these are just some of the astonishing findings of the Concordia Lake Association Study....
Wright County passes Ordinance to create mandateroy, regional inspection for aquatic invasive species.
We have two phrases that we use at MLR, Cabins are where family happens, and lake places are heirlooms, not assets.
Both of these tend to be true for Minnesota's lake loving residents. But moving these properties from one generation to the next can be tricky. That is why attorney David Salter's webinar on creating Cabin Trusts is so topical.
At the stroke of midnight on Saturday, May 13 th , Governor Mark Dayton will cast his line,
proclaim Clean Drain Dry Day, signaling the start to a time honored tradition, the Minnesota
Fishing Opener!
Fishing Tournments are a high use event, and represent a risk for the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species. Rima Smith Keprios, the Cass County AIS Coordinator for Cass County and Eric Bakke, tournament director of Minnesota's largest fishing event, the Frank J. Schneider Memorial Muskie Tournament, have put together a program that meets the needs of tournament organizers and significantly lowers the risk of AIS spread during the event.
This tournament is Muskie Inc.'s oldest tournament, 40 years old, and includes over 500 fishermen on 20 lakes in Minnesota. It is large and complex - the perfect situation to try a pilot project. MLR is hosting a webinar featuring both RIma and Erik so that their innovative program can serve as a template for other local efforts.
Lake Koronis and Greater Lake Sylvia are both infested with starry stonewort, a new micro alga that can have profound negative impacts on both lake health and lake utility. They are holding this Summit, with Guest Speaker Dr. John Rogers, Clemson University, to provide other lake associations with the best information on starry stonewort, how to prevent it from entering a lake, how to identify it, and what might be done after the fact IF it becomes established.
MLR Executive Director Jeff Forester will present at Riverside United Methodist Church which will host a 90 minute 2017 Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Prevention event on March 20th, 2017 from 7:00 to 8:30 at Riverside United Methodist Church, Highway 71 North, Park Rapids, MN Phone: 218-732-5205
The Aquatic Invaders Summit was a great event and a number of people have contacted us to request copies of the presentations given. Attendees had to make difficult choices about which of the many presentations to attend. Now you can see the presentations you might have missed - or if you could not attend, have access to the conference after the fact.
Special thanks to Don Hickman and the Initiative Foundation, Clean Water land and Legacy, our sponsors and supporters including US Fish and Wildlife, MN DNR, National Park Service, MN COLA, Wildlife Forever, MAWD and all of the presenters who donated their time and energy to make the Aquatic Invaders Summit on of the largest citizen led, water based gatherings in the state.
