FOR 2008 - FLEXIBLE OPPORTUNITIES TO HELP WITH THE A.I.S. PROGRAM

Many lake and river residents are only at their summer homes for short periods. It’s hard to find time to attend training-sessions and work at boat landings on weekends and holidays. The MWLA and the Town Lakes Committee have designed a volunteer program that doesn’t require more time than people can give.

            The “Adopt a Shoreline” program is open to all those who can access their shorelines. Your involvement can be as little as one hour a month, even if you’re here for only a month. You don’t have to attend a training program. We feel confident that if enough of our members sign up, we’ll add a significant number of protected front feet along our shorelines, and we’ll set a new record for volunteer involvement.

            Over in Lac du Flambeau 175 people signed up last summer to look for aquatic invasive species. With 1200 households on our Chain we feel we can do better than that. But we’re not just trying to set a record. The MWLA is determined to insure that our Chain remains free of Eurasian Water Milfoil,  Curly Leaf Pondweed, and Purple Loosetrife. Lakes associations in Minocqua, Eagle River, and on the Gresham lakes just south of us are spending thousands of dollars on weed-killers.

If you would like to find out more about the “Adopt a Shoreline” program and its flexible requirements, send an email to MWLAmailbox@yahoo.com. We’ll send you a fact-sheet and a sign-up form.

The A.I.S. threat isn’t a false alarm. Fast-growing weed-cover changes forever the ways people use their lakes. A.I.S. is as much of a threat to property values as low waters. Our new program will make it possible for the Town Lakes Committee to concentrate on boat landings, fishing tournaments, and other aspects of A.I.S. prevention. Our motto is: “We’ll cover the waterfront!”