BY PETE WICKLUND
Journal Times | Posted: Saturday, February 9, 2008 12:00 am
DOVER - Residents living around Eagle Lake are being asked to give 10 to 15 minutes of their time in an effort to bring long-term health to the silt and weed-plagued body of water.
Ten to 15 minutes is the estimated time needed to complete a 23-question survey that will help gauge the lake's economic impact on the town. Economic factors are often an important determinant in the awarding of grants that the town may apply for to help with lake restoration efforts, according to Russ Kashian, associate professor of economics at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. The university's Fiscal and Economic Research Center is administering the survey for the town.
The three-page survey was mailed last month to 230 residents living around the lake. The surveys are due Feb. 28, and thus far about a quarter have been returned. Results are expected in April.
The premise Kashian and town officials are trying to show is that a healthy lake equates to higher property values for lake area homes, which benefits the town's tax base. There are approximately 1,900 property owners in the town of Dover. The 230 people with lakeshore property pay more than half of the property taxes.
"If properly maintained and protected, there is a significant economic value to Eagle Lake. It can actually be the diamond in the crown of Dover and, if treated as such, it will respond in kind," Dover Plan Commissioner Jim Celano said.
This winter, Eagle Lake Management District and Racine County finalized a watershed plan that will ultimately protect the lake from damaging runoff, according to state Rep. Robin Vos, R-Caledonia. Vos said properties on and off the lake will be examined to identify origins of runoff and places where soil erosion has occurred. Doing so will make it much easier to contain the runoff.
Vos, whose district includes Dover, worked with local leaders and the state Department of Natural Resources to develop a large scale restoration project. The restoration, known as biomanipulation, will involve large-scale fish removal and aquatic plan diversification.
"Essentially, the lake will be emptied and the DNR will start from scratch to restore a naturally-functioning ecosystem," Vos said.
Currently, the lake is overpopulated with panfish, which eat too much of the zooplankton needed to kill the algae blooms. In order to bring this zooplankton back into balance, predators of the panfish, such as northern pike and largemouth bass, need to be introduced.
The restocking effort was scheduled to begin this past fall and continue through this winter. However, the project has been delayed a year, due to a new fish disease known as viral hemorrhagic septicemia and recently discovered in Wisconsin. Precautions are being taken to guarantee the health of any new fish introduced into Eagle Lake, Vos said.
Silt control
Last year, Dover Town Chairman Ray Gromacki formed a lake restoration committee, appointing Dover farmer and environmentalist Barney Lavin as its leader. According to Lavin, the town committee will be working with landowners in the watershed to stop the flow of silt into the lake.
Projects being considered include wetland restorations, retention ponds and stormwater treatment vaults. The committee also will investigate the possibility of a new, modern dam to replace the existing one and lake dredging.
The committee will rely on two existing organizations to aid the restoration efforts: The Eagle Lake Management District and Eagle Lake Property Owners Improvement Association. The committee will working in conjunction with the lake management district's seven-year lake plan, but will focus this year on silt retention in the Eagle Lake Watershed.
"Eagle Lake and its watershed are natural resources that are of tremendous importance to the area. They have to be protected, even from the standpoint of just being a good citizen," Gromacki said. "We don't want to invite tremendous development to the area, but people here, especially around the lake, pay a lot in property taxes. The town has a responsibility to improve and maintain the lake for its people and its local business owners. We see our efforts as an investment in the whole community."