6.6. SR 11-01-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Item # 6.6. MEMORANDUM TO: Mayor and City Council FROM: Rebecca Haug, Environmental Technician DATE: November 1,2004 SUBJECT: Clarification on the Curly leaf Pond Weed Remediation in Lake Orono On Wednesday, October 20, 2004, city staff met with the Lake Orono Water Quality Task Force. The eradication of Curly-leaf pondweed in Lake Orono was discussed. There were concerns about the information that was discussed at the October 4, 2004 City Council meeting regarding the Lake Orono drawdown. To clarify the concerns from the two residents who spoke at the Council meeting, there was an article in the Elk River Star News prior to the drawdown in 2003. Since the Lake Orono Improvement Association (LOlA) was sending a flyer out to all the residents on the lake, city staff did not see a reason to also send an additional flyer from the city to all the residents along the lake. As far as notifying residents of this year's proposed drawdown, staff and LOlA were waiting for the proper permits from the DNR and City Council support prior to notifying residents. Unfortunately, the information about the turtles being harmed during the draw down in 2003 was brought to the DNR's attention during the week of September 20. 2004. The DNR was not aware of any negative impacts to the lake. They were in full support of the draw down until the information about the turtles was presented to them. Since Lake Orono is a reservoir of the Elk River, the Curly Leaf Pondweed flows down from upstream. However, if there are no attempts to control this non-native invasive species, like Eurasion Milfoil, it will choke out the lake, making it undesirable to live on and lower property values. The mention of considering the pros and cons when considering the drawdown has been discussed in depth with the DNR, LOlA. and city staff. The other methods, mechanical harvesting and herbicide control, of controlling curly-leaf pondweed have also been discussed. In addition. LOlA contacted other lake associations about their experiences and costs involved in the eradication of Curly leaf Pondweed. The following is a pros and cons description for each method: