Clean Lakes Alliance supports Dane County Executive Joe Parisi’s proposed $18 million budget to aid flood recovery. Many of the initiatives also support water quality improvements outlined in the Yahara CLEAN Strategic Action Plan for Phosphorus Reduction. These measures will move us in the right direction to reduce runoff and increase infiltration.
Over the past twelve months, the Clean Lakes Alliance Economic Impact and Policy Committee met monthly and consulted with partners and experts to craft and adopt advocacy priorities. These goals will advance Plan 2020: A Clear Path Forward, our four-year strategic plan.
In Greater Madison, the time has come to put lakes at the top of our community agenda. Recent flooding and historically large cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) blooms are symptoms of a changing climate and a harder, less resilient landscape. The Center for Climatic Research has documented southern Wisconsin’s increasingly wet climate, with more frequent heavy rain events causing flooding throughout the region. This is impacting lake water quality by bringing increased sediment and nutrient pollution to our lakes and streams. We need a change in how we manage the landscape surrounding our homes, farm fields, and city streets to accommodate a wetter climate in our region.
Did you know that construction erosion is a serious and ongoing threat to our lakes? Controlling construction erosion is one of 14 recommended actions to reduce algae blooms in the Yahara CLEAN Strategic Action Plan for Phosphorus Reduction. It is also one of eight focus areas in Plan 2020: A Clear Path Forward, Clean Lakes Alliance’s strategic operating plan.
With every failed, missing or improperly installed erosion-control measure, the risk of dirty runoff entering our lakes rises each time it rains. Whether this leads to a muddy street or a dirt-choked storm sewer drain, a mismanaged construction project can spell big trouble for water quality.
Funding for environmental conservation, restoration, and education projects has been awarded this year by the Dane County Environmental Council totaling more than $17,000. These grants go to communities and non-profits that do work within Dane County.
Clean Lakes Alliance will receive around $3,500 to fund projects such as our farm tours and water quality monitoring. This award will help to purchase necessary equipment for our volunteers and provide transportation to offsite projects.
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi said, “We can always accomplish more when we work together. By partnering with these communities and non-profits, we have the ability to educate and inspire others, and continue our work to improve and conserve the county’s outdoor spaces,” and we couldn’t agree more!
To see which other projects were funded, read Sun Prairie Star’s article HERE.
Two years ago, I put $60,000 in the county budget to analyze the water quality and phosphorus content of miles of streams that feed into our Yahara lakes. A year of research later, the findings are stark: if we don’t remove sludge from the bottom of these streams, it will take 99 years to see a 50% reduction in phosphorus that finds its way into our lakes.
Dane County will invest $12 million over the next four years to remove 870,000 pounds of this phosphorus – Dane County’s boldest, most tangible effort yet to improving the health and vitality of waters so integral to our economy and quality of life. This breakthrough project is the cornerstone of this year’s $10 million lakes clean-up county budget.
The data says what’s been done to date has worked at reducing what nutrients go on the land, when they’re applied, and most importantly, keeping them there. County staff and farmers have implemented conservation practices on 90% of the acres in the watershed and nutrient management plans have been completed on 75% of cropland. Soil testing shows farmlands in the watershed are on average already two times better than state standards for phosphorus.
We’re making progress, but we can’t reach our goal without getting at what’s already in the water. The project will return the stream bottoms to the way they were in 1890, allowing for new fisheries and healthy habitats for wildlife.
A significant component of what hurts our lakes is already in our waters. This budget starts the work of getting it out, removing 125 years of accrued sediment. Kevin Connors and his team of engineers at our Land and Water Resources Department should be commended for crafting such a common sense solution.
This message was originally published in May of 2017 for the 2016 State of the Lakes Annual Report.
Dear Friends of Clean Lakes,
Clean Lakes Alliance is very proud of the progress our community has made towards enacting the Yahara CLEAN Strategic Action Plan for Reducing Phosphorus. Dane County has been a leader in supporting clean water since the start. Just this past year, a $12-million, county-funded initiative to remove phosphorus-laced sediment from 33 miles of Yahara streams over five years helped further our common goal of healthy lakes.
Wetlands provide many services to our communities: they protect us from flooding, clean and filter water, recharge our groundwater, protect our shorelines and provide habitat for fish and wildlife. They also provide opportunities for education and outdoor recreation, an important driver for tourism in Wisconsin.
This summer, Clean Lakes Alliance staff and our talented board and committee members are working closely with partners to get phosphorus reduction efforts off the ground. Here’s a quick summary of where we are and what’s going on:
From putting the finishing touches on a new system to convert countless gallons of waste and manure into clean water to investing in proven technologies, Dane County has been and will continue to be a leader in our efforts to clean up our lakes.
Support clean, healthy lakes with Clean Lakes Alliance’s 12th Annual Loop the Lake Bike Ride, presented by Lake Ridge Bank. Loop the Lake is an at-your-own-pace bike ride around Lake Monona on Saturday, June 15th that raises funds to protect and preserve Greater Madison’s lakes. Make a day of it while you enjoy entertaining and educational activities at many parks along the route.
Registration includes:
Fun and educational stops (see information below)
Super soft t-shirt, compliments of Lands’ End
Food cart item
Free beer or seltzer, courtesy of Bell’s Brewery (21+)
