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DNR to Award Grants for Watershed Improvements
#1
DNR divides $536,850 from boating fees among grants for water projects in 15 counties


Good news is coming to Indiana’s public lakes and rivers in the form of project grants totaling $536,850 from the Lake and River Enhancement Program (LARE) in DNR’s Division of Fish and Wildlife.

The funds will be used for protection and restoration of the state’s public waters.

"These grants continue a tradition of using fees collected from Hoosier boaters to protect and enhance the very resources they value for their recreational pursuits, Indiana’s lakes and streams,” said DNR Director Kyle Hupfer. “These projects were proposed by local sponsors to improve aquatic habitat for fish and wildlife and enhance the recreational opportunities of these watery treasures.

“The grants provide financial assistance to local groups in tackling natural resources issues that can be very expensive to address, and must be solved with long-term planning and diligence."

The grants are for biological and engineering projects including diagnostic, design, and engineering feasibility studies, as well as construction projects. They complement the $1.25 million in grant awards that Hupfer announced in May. Those awards were for dealing with nuisance aquatic vegetation and dredging sediment.

Funding for these targeted projects comes from the LARE fee paid by boat owners. In 2003 the legislature provided a variable fee based on the value of each boat. The new fee structure provides approximately $3.3 million each year, a third of which must be used by the DNR for lake projects that remove sediment or control exotic or invasive plants or animals. The remaining two-thirds must be split between the DNR Division of Law Enforcement and the LARE program.

The law enforcement division uses its share to help fund local boating safety programs.

July 2006 grant projects, with county, grant amount, description and local contact information follow.

Palestine Lake (Kosciusko), $37,800: A preliminary diagnostic study was performed in 1988. Significant aquatic plant growth is affecting recreational use. Sediment deltas are forming at the mouths of inlet streams. High suspended solids, nutrients and E. coli values are the norm for the lake’s watershed. Award is for a current diagnostic study to determine causes and potential solutions.

Local Contact: Mark Whittaker, president, Palestine Lake Property Owners Association, (800) 548-0744.



Hudson Lake (LaPorte), $31,500: High water levels in the 1980s led to the installation of an overflow device. Current residents have been disturbed by extremely low water levels. Award is for diagnostic study to evaluate the lake and its watershed to develop a plan to address nuisance algae and macrophytes, determine lake level trends and assess water quality.

Local Contact: Steven Varela, Director, Hudson Lake Conservation Association, (312) 635-7500



Blue Lake (Whitley), $31,500: The Blue Lake Association, Inc., is preparing a LARE-funded diagnostic study that has identified drainage inlets that are adversely affecting the lake, including a regulated drain that has seemingly worsened since being dredged. Award is for engineering feasibility study on headwaters retention and the installation of grade controls in the drainage channels.

Local Contact: Marc Shoda, President, Blue Lake Association, Inc., (260) 424-4792



Lake Wawasee (Kosciusko), $21,600: The unnatural condition of the channels and upstream regulated drains from the excavation of a number of channels providing boating access has resulted in soil instability, erosion and sedimentation. The depth of some portions of channels has been reduced substantially by sediment deposition, impeding recreational usage. The award is for a feasibility study to evaluate the condition of Howard-Bentz Ditch and Launer Drain, and the collective channel outlet into the lake to determine how best to control erosion.

Local Contact: Todd Bowen, Enchanted Hills Community Association, Inc., (260) 437-4174.



Lake Gage (Steuben), $28,800: A study completed in 2001 pointed to several upstream areas where bank erosion control and wetland restoration/retention could be used to mitigate water quality problems affecting the lakes. A LARE-funded engineering feasibility study supports the practicability of wetland restoration/retention and stream channel restoration at two tributary sites. The award is for the design of such measures.

Local Contact: Joseph A. Weaver, Chairman, Lake Enhancement Committee, Lake Gage and Lime Lake Association, Inc., (260) 833-2479.



(Five Lakes) Witmer, Westler, Dallas, Hackenburg and Messick Lakes (LaGrange), $36,000: Award is for design/implementation of a project to map the stormwater drains and problem culverts around the lakes, stabilize the inlet to Adams Lake, inventory and develop sediment traps on various ditches, reconstruct the sediment trap in Wolcottville downstream from State Road 3 and develop an outreach program to install native vegetation buffers on lakeshore properties to reduce goose access and related nutrient/bacteria problems.

Local Contact: Robert Christen, President, Five Lakes Conservation Association, Inc. (260) 854-4846.



Lake George (Lake), $50,000: Award is for construction of bio-engineered shoreline stabilization of Fred Rose Park using rock toe protection, which in some areas will allow for human access to the lake, with slope protection provided by soil-encapsulated lifts providing a medium to establish native shrubs and grasses. Total estimated cost is $612,893, with grant funds being provided by a variety of sources.

Local Contact: Victor R. Levan, Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, City of Hobart, (219) 942-2987.



Lake Maxinkuckee (Marshall), $18,450: The award is for restoring approximately 2,400 square feet of the near-shore area to a natural state by restoring vegetation. Plantings will include 256 shoreline plants, 795 shallow emergent plants, 265 deep emergent plants and 265 floating aquatic plants. Ideally, the project will not only demonstrate the feasibility of plant re-establishment but will encourage lakeshore residents to help restore aquatic plants.

Local Contact: Tina Hissong, Executive Director, Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Council, (574) 842-3686.



Crooked Lake (Steuben), Lake Manitou (Fulton), Lake Wawasee (Kosciusko), $36,000: Award is for design work for a minimum of four prototype plans to establish vegetation in the shallow-to-deep water areas within each lake. The contractor will determine the appropriate places for four prototypes to install at four locations in each lake, select a variety of appropriate emergent and submersed plants, monitor the growth and survival of the plants and monitor water transparency within the planting zones on a weekly basis.

Local Contacts: Keith Hoskins, President, Crooked Lake Association, (260) 482-7665;

Orv Huffman, Watershed Coordinator, Lake Manitou Association, (574) 223-2159, ext. 5006; Heather Harwood, Coordinator, Wawasee Area Conservancy Foundation, (574) 457-4549.



Black Creek (Steuben), $36,000: Award is for design of a plan to reduce erosion into the lake from the Black Creek watershed. This follows historical efforts to control erosion and nutrient runoff from agricultural lands in the watershed. Measures to be used will include some combination of constructed wetlands, stream-bank stabilization, grade control structures and buffer strips.

Local Contact: William Dillon, President, Hamilton Lake Association, (260) 341-9091.



Highland Park Drain (Kosciusko), $23,700: This tributary of Little Chapman Lake is a source of an unnatural amount of sediment that is accumulating in the lake. A previous study provided initial engineering information regarding methods for controlling channel erosion. The award is for design and construction of series of six rock check dams to stabilize the eroding stream channels on the Slater property.

Local Contact: D.C. Lee, President, Chapman Lakes Foundation, Inc., (219) 269-5888.



Duck Creek (Franklin), $18,000: The creek experiences extensive soil erosion and bank instability. Silt deposits result in new meanders and subsequent property loss. Livestock operations are also contributing to bank erosion and water quality concerns. Award is for watershed diagnostic study to identify causes of soil loss along the stream and provide water quality information.

Local Contact: Michael T. Schwab, Chairman, Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District, (765) 647-2651, extension 3. For alternate, contact Betty Gabbard at the same office.



Little Wabash River (Allen, Huntington and Whitley), $29,500: It is estimated that over 13,000 acres of the 49,199-acre three-county watershed are eroding above the tolerable level. The river and its tributaries have extensive channels for agricultural drainage. The Town of Roanoke experiences flooding on a regular basis. Much of the watershed is being subjected to Fort Wayne development that is affecting hydrology. Award is for watershed diagnostic study.

Local Contact: Nadean Eldien, Office Manager, Whitley County Soil and Water Conservation District, (260) 244-6266, extension 3.



Middle Mississinewa River (Blackford, Delaware, Grant), $36,000: This grant will evaluate this approximately 40,000-acre watershed with a diagnostic study; an effort that will complement other studies on the Mississinewa River to provide a more comprehensive overview..

Local Contact: Mary Hull, District Secretary, Grant County Soil and Water Conservation District, (765) 668-8983, ext. 3.



Upper Tippecanoe River Lakes (Whitley/Noble), $72,000: Award is for a diagnostic study/strategic management plan for the following lakes: Goose, New, Old, Loon, Big, Crane and Crooked. The thrust would be to 1) collect current watershed-wide water quality and biological data, 2) identify emerging threats or pollution-prevention strategies and 3) broaden education efforts and increase partnership capabilities to leverage resources for watershed management and improvement.

Local Contact: Holly LaSalle, Watershed Coordinator, Tippecanoe Environmental Lake and Watershed Foundation, (574) 834-2185
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