2016 AIS Grant Information

Join us to learn more about your lake!

We are excited to announce that the North Lakeland Discovery Center in partnership with the Town of Winchester was awarded a 2016 grant for Birch, Rainbow, and Tamarack Lakes. We would like to invite all residents to save the date for a Kickoff Meeting for Birch, Rainbow, and Tamarack Lakes on June 25th, time TBD. Work conducted through these grants will expand our understanding of the health, functioning, and threats to the waters of the township and enable the protection and enhancement of our lakes for generations to come! Through these grants, we hired a consultant, Onterra LLC, to conduct in-depth studies of the lakes and produce lake management plans. The Town of Winchester has generously committed a portion of matching funds as a component of the grants.
We strongly encourage all members of the public with an interest in our waters to volunteer their time as match as well. This decreases the amount of matching cash-out-of-pocket funding expense.

Volunteering is as easy as walking down your shoreline and noticing what plants have washed up or keeping your eyes open for aquatic invasive species (AIS) while you are out fishing or taking a pontoon ride on a sunny day!

The Discovery Center will host numerous AIS monitoring trainings throughout the summer on how to volunteer and what to look for. We would like to invite you to participate on Thursday June 16th at 10am on Birch Lake or Thursday June 23rd at 3pm on Rainbow Lake (details to follow.) The Discovery Center is also always willing to help you identify any potential AIS that you find in your lake and stream travels. Simply bring a sample by to show us, or take a photograph and email it to us. It’s important to note that even if you don’t see an aquatic invasive species your time spent keeping your eyes open still counts!

Volunteers are also needed to participate in Clean Boats Clean Waters program, educating boaters at the Harris and Birch boat landings about AIS and steps that they can take to prevent the spread. Join us for a workshop: Tuesday, May 17th from 10am-12pm at the Discovery Center; Saturday, June 4th from 9 to 11am at the Winchester Town Hall; or Wednesday June 15 from 10am-12pm at the Winchester Town Hall.

Please make sure that you report all volunteer time and boat-hours to Anne Kretschmann, AIS Coordinator at ais@discoverycenter.net or 715-543-2085. Every little bit helps keep our lakes beautiful

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