SUMMER 2024 NEWSLETTER
- Long Lake Waters Association
- Aug 5
- 6 min read
Long Lake Waters Association
Our mission is to provide collaborative leadership in improving and protecting the water quality of the Long Lake Creek Watershed for the enjoyment of present and future generations
SEVEN LAKES - THREE CITIES - ONE WATERSHED
Welcome to Summer in the Watershed!
Summer is a good time for celebration and for taking steps to benefit our lakes and the surrounding area. Healthy watersheds support biodiversity and clean water for both wildlife and people to enjoy!
Save the Date:
September 12th LLWA Fall Event!
Join us at the Hideaway in the Red Rooster for a free community event with information on current projects, refreshments, and education from 5:00-7:00pm, 9/12/24 at 1832 Wayzata Boulevard, in Long Lake.
Rain Barrels:
A big THANK YOU to all those who participated in the Rain Barrel Sale againt this year! It was a great success and a wonderful local project to help the watershed. Also, a heart-felt thank you to Harrisons Bay Association for their efforts to make the project possible. To learn more about the benefits of using rain barrels, visit The University of Minnesota.
What’s happening: Aquatic Invasive Species Programs
Minnehaha Creek Watershed District (MCWD) Assessment of Long Lake:
For several years, MCWD has surveyed the submerged aquatic vegetation each spring and fall to determine Long Lake’s aquatic plant health, using a standardized Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA). In Spring 2023, Long Lake scored about 10 on the Floristic Quality Index (FQI), reflecting half the end goal for Long Lake, as well as the prevalence of both native and invasives.
James Johnson, an aquatic ecologist and owner of Freshwater Scientific Services, LLC, recently helped LLWA interpret MCWD’s data. Coontail and Eurasian Watermilfoil are the dominant species, primarily thriving in shallow areas. Invasive Eurasian Watermilfoil may help stabilize sediment, but it will expand with increased clarity which will be something to monitor. Curlyleaf Pondweed is another invasive species present that deserves monitoring. His recommendation at this time is to not chemically control for management of invasives.
Eurasian Watermilfoil Curlyleaf Pondweed Coontail
Photo Credit: University of Minnesota
You can visit the “Lake Health” tab via the Minnesota DNR LakeFinder to see how our lake plant community compares to other regional lakes
Ambassadors at Nelson Beach Boat Launch in Long Lake:
Be sure to look for the AIS Ambassadors who will be present at the Long Lake public boat launch, AT Nelson Beach in Long Lake, on weekends through July 21st.
There will also be DNR water guards at random times through-out the summer to further help protect the lake from AIS.
In 2023, Long Lake was a participant in the successful Hennepin County Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Ambassador Project at the public boat launch. The focus of the project was to educate the public with effective methods to increase compliance with self-inspecting watercraft and water-related equipment. The goal was to positively impact boat owners’ behaviors to increase self-inspection and AIS compliance whether an inspector is present or not, thus holding users more accountable. In 2023, Long Lake Ambassadors had 229 interactions over 133 hours with an average of about 2 visits per hour.
Hennepin County is seeing some very positive change as a result of the ambassadors. In 2017, 20 % of the boaters at the Long Lake public launch had AIS violations, vs. 8% in 2023. In 2017, 48% of the boaters self-inspected their watercraft entering or leaving the lake, vs. 82 % in 2023. That is welcome progress!
If you are interested in becoming an AIS Ambassador, you can apply here.
If you’re interested in reading the full 2023 AIS Ambassador Project report, contact Hennepin County AIS Program.
Be A Good Water Steward:
When putting a boat, jet ski, kayak, paddle board or canoe in or out of Long Lake, remember to use the CD3 Waterless Cleaning Station at the public boat launch. This self-serve station provides easy-to-use tools that help you remove weeds, zebra mussels, and other unwanted aquatic hitchhikers from your watercraft and equipment.
In addition to cleaning, State law requires that boaters drain all water-related equipment—including ballast tanks and portable bait containers—and properly dispose of unwanted bait like minnows and worms to prevent the spread of AIS.
If you'd like to learn more identification techniques, the University of Minnesota is hosting a Labs to Lake Aquatic Plant ID Workshop, held July 25, 2024 on the University of Minnesota St. Paul Campus from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Registration fees for this workshop are $90 and lunch is provided. This workshop sells out every year, so register to reserve your spot! Register here.
Take the Lake Pledge!
If you are interested in protecting the lake from aquatic invasive species (AIS), join the community and take the LAKE PLEDGE to stop the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species. The Lake Pledge is a FREE, creative, family-fun program with interactive short videos showing how to protect our lakes from AIS that can cause damage to native fish and plant populations.
JOIN TODAY at https://www.lakepledge.com/
What’s moving: The Birds and The Bees
One bird and pollinator that made an appearance in the early spring migration was the male Ruby Throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris), a tiny 3 inch by 4 inch wing-spanned agile flier. It’s the only bird able to fly backwards with wings beating more than 50 times a second. As females arrived through May, they built tiny nests from spider webs and lichen, laying two eggs. By June, these females tend to their young for approximately three weeks when they, too, are ready to fly.
The Rusty-Patched Bumble Bee (Bombus affinis) are also notable in Minnesota. These bees are responsible for 80% of pollination in the state and are endangered due to biodiversity loss in plant species. As the Twin Cities area is one of the last places to see them, the University of Minnesota’s Bee Lab scientists and conservationists need our help identifying their remaining population using https://www.bumblebeewatch.org/.
What’s Blooming: Native Pollinators
Milkweed is beginning to bloom and host Monarch Butterfly caterpillars, as well as other pollinators such as bees. Yellow loosestrife is attracting its unique Loosestrife Bee (Macropis Steironematis), who uses the flower’s oil to feed its’ young.
Native plants provide the nectar, seeds and pollen necessary for the birds, butterflies, and bees in Minnesota to flourish.
These plants are also wonderful choices for rain gardens as they simultaneously support pollinators and promote watershed health. Excellent natives to consider are Blazing Star, Goldenrod, Aster, Ironweed, Bergamot, Boneset, Culver’s Root and Obedient.
Many more native plants can be found through the Native Plant Resource from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
How to help:
Personal Steps:
We can help reduce phosphorus in our lakes by cleaning up grass clippings and pet waste, and controlling erosion on our property. These simple steps can have a big impact, by helping reduce algae blooms and promoting the biodiversity of aquatic and terrestrial native plants.
Volunteer!
Long Lake Waters Association is looking for watershed residents to volunteer for special projects and to be lake liaisons, especially on School, Holy Name, Dickey, Wolsfeld, Long Lake and Tanager.
What do you see?
Please let us know what you are seeing in the watershed, either conditions or problems you are concerned about, or positive feedback and community actions. You can reach out by email to longlakewaters@gmail.com, or share on our Facebook or Instagram feeds.
Help us grow!
Spread the word about LLWA, check out our website at https://www.longlakewaters.org/ follow us on Instagram or Facebook, share this newsletter with friends and neighbors.
Want to learn more about local projects?
Long Lake Creek Watershed Roadmap:
Since 2018, the Cities of Long Lake, Medina, Orono and LLWA and Minnehaha Creek Watershed District (MCWD) have been working together toward a common goal of improving water quality in the Long Lake Creek Sub-watershed. The Long Lake Creek Roadmap, created from this partnership, outlines a strategy and a number of projects that will help restore the impaired lakes in the sub-watershed to meet state water quality standards.
County Road 6 Stormwater Pond Project:
One current project of the MCWD is retrofitting the stormwater pond on County Road 6 to help improve water quality downstream to Long Lake and thus water into Lake Minnetonka. The project will add a sand filtration bench to improve water treatment capacity to the pond. Use of this improved technology will increase the pond’s ability to treat water from the surrounding area before it reaches Long Lake and maximize the pond’s water storage.
Long Lake Waters Association
PO Box 195, Long Lake, MN 55356
A Minnesota 501(c)(3)
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