07-3081-Spring newslet - Gull Chain of Lakes Association

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS ACTING PRESIDENTS Marvin Meyer - Gull, Wilson Bay 828-9577, mpatmeyer@msn.com John Taylor – Gull, East Side 963-2229, taylorjc@uslink.net EXECUTIVE SECRETARY/TREASURER Rosemary Goff – Margaret 963-3542, togo@nisswa.net COMMUNITY RELATIONS/MEMBERSHIP Rob Johnson – Gull Narrows 820-2431, robj@brainerd.net Elsie Zapffe-Verdeja – Gull, East Side 963-2218(Summer), ezapffe@hotmail.com EDUCATION Mary & Steve Lienke – Margaret 963-9814, mslienke@msn.com ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION Robert Eliason – Bass Lake 568-7868, reliason@tds.net Charles McQuinn – Gull, Northeast Side 612-280-1901, charles@lakeregionstorage.com SAFETY & RECREATION John Taylor – Gull, East Side 963-2229, taylorjc@uslink.net Bob Toborg – Margaret 963-3542, togo@nisswa.net Steve Allex - Gull 829-2612; savesta@msn.com Tim Brastrup - DNR Representative, Fisheries 833-8636; tim.brastrup@dnr.state.mn.us Mark Engstrand – Gull, East Side 330-1240; gulllakeguy@aol.com Ron Faust – Gull 961-1617; ronfaust@mac.com MaryKay Larson – US Army Corps of Engineers Manager, Gull Lake Dam Recreation Area 829-2797; MaryKay.L.Larson@usace.army.mil Don Samuelson – Gull, Booming Out Bay 829-4898; donsam@brainerd.net Cathy Taylor – Gull, East Side 963-2229; cathyt@uslink.net Elsie Zapffe-Verdeja - Gull 963-2218; ezapffe@hotmail.com WEBSITE MANAGER Dave Anderson – Bass Lake 952-935-0106, L-S-I@comcast.net EX-OFFICIO PRESIDENTS Dore Mesch - Upper Gull 568-5612, dorymesch@uslink.net Bill Rickmeyer - Gull, West Side 963-4893, Bill.rickmeyer@remax.net website: gcola.org PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE John Taylor Winter is over and spring is here, or least I hope it is by the time you are reading this. They say we had the most snow since the 2000-01 winter, and one of the coldest in quite some time. Being one of those people who love winter, grooms cross country ski trials and also skis, I loved it. During the winter your board was busy. As you will see in an article later in the newsletter we decided to take another step in our continuing efforts to protect the Gull Chain of Lakes by leasing three video monitoring camera’s. If successful, we want to make this a permanent system and one day buy the equipment. In order for this to continue even next year we need your approval by sending donations to keep this up. A couple of years ago we had what we call a dock drop, where we dropped off the summer newsletter and some educational materials to every dock on the Chain. This will be done sometime in early July. We also started winter lake testing done by A&W Research on a trial basis and will possibly continue to do this in the future. This also depends on funds being available. This summer the annual meeting will again be held at the Zapffe Compound as it has the past several summers. Please keep the evening of July 16 open on your calendar. Another project we will be investigating is the possibility of the Association doing some chemical treatment for curly leaf pondweed in some areas of the Chain. This will be done if the necessary funds are raised. As you see your board has started many projects and has many more we would like to do. The one thread you may notice is when and if we have the money. I realize these are hard economic times for us all. I firmly feel that your investment in your home on Gull Lake or the Chain (whether you’re main home or a seasonal home) will be enhanced by helping us. The government agencies are cutting back in many areas, and in order to protect our resource we have to give some money. I could go on, but if you all could dig a little deeper in your pockets each year maybe we could; 1) stop the spread of exotics’ or prolong its spread for many years, 2) help with the enforcement to make the lakes safe, 3) test the waters and investigate programs to keep our waters clean, 4) keep the buoy system updated with replacement buoys and lights, 5) and many other programs. So, now take this newsletter, and if your at the lake go out on a lawn chair and enjoy it. Or if your not in the Brainerd area yet, just know that its only a few short weeks before you will be here. LAKES PRINTING CONFIDENTIALITY POLICY Lakes Printing in Brainerd is the only business that is allowed access to our Association member list and only for the purpose of mailing our newsletter. They have issued the following confidentiality policy. We have a strict policy of confidentiality. We will not sell, trade, swap or in any other way use your list for anything except mailing your newsletter. We understand fully that you are the owner of the list and we simply have an electronic copy on our system for your use. This policy is not just for the Gull Chain of Lakes Association, it is applied to all customers. 4
WINTER WATER TESTING – 2009 RESULTS Dr. Robert Eliason, Board Member On 5 February, A. W. Research Laboratories collected water samples from Nisswa, Roy, Spider, and Margaret lakes. The following parameters were measured: total phosphorous, chloride, dissolved oxygen, temperature, conductivity, and acidity (pH). The results were compared to MPCA reference values for our Northern Lakes and Forests Ecoregion (NLFE). The concentration of dissolved oxygen (DO) was measured as a function of depth in Margaret, Nisswa, and Roy lakes but not in Spider because it is too shallow. DO decreased with increasing depth and, in all cases, became less than 2 mg/L at 20 feet. This is of concern as an oxygen concentration below 2 mg/L indicates anoxia. Most aquatic organisms (including game fish) have difficulty surviving under anoxia conditions. The range for total phosphorous (TP) concentration for unpolluted lakes in our Northern Lakes and Forests Ecoregion is 0.014-0.027 mg/L. The TP concentrations in Nisswa, Roy, and Spider lakes were within the NLFE range. The TP concentration in Margaret was above the range, which was expected since it is on the EPA list of impaired lakes. The NLFE reference range for chloride is 0.6-1.2 mg/L. The chloride concentrations in Nisswa, Roy, and Spider lakes were about 10 times the upper value (1.2 mg/L) for unpolluted lakes, and the concentration in Margaret was about 3 times the upper value. This is of particular concern because it indicates that the lakes are experiencing pollution by chloride containing salts. The common chloride compounds are sodium chloride, potassium chloride and calcium chloride. Sodium and potassium chlorides are used in water softening and can enter lakes from sewer systems. Sodium and calcium chlorides are used as deicing compounds and can enter lakes from storm sewer runoff and from road runoff. Highway 371, Nisswa (218) 963-2584 800-322-3525 Specific conductivity, which measures the conductance of electricity through water, indicates the presence of ions (salts) in the water. The reference NLFE conductivity range is 50- 250 µs/cm. In all lakes at all depths, the specific conductance was above the upper value. These results were expected because chloride salts increase electrical conductance and would contribute to a high specific conductance. The specific conductance for Lake Margaret was much higher than that for the other lakes. This was unexpected because its chloride concentration was one third of that for the other lakes. This indicates that there must be other nonchloride containing salt compounds in the lake. Often these other compounds contain metal ions, e.g. arsenic, lead, mercury, which contribute to pollution. 1620 Mary Fawcett Memorial Dr East Gull Lake, MN 56401 218-828-2344 campconfidence.com Buying or Selling? Downsizing or Relocating? Donate your home, land, furniture, household goods, sporting goods, lawn mowers, cars, trucks, vans, boats, trailers, snow mobiles, ATVs, campers or trailers to our Annual Outdoor Auction. We accept donations year-round and pick up service is available. Your donation is tax deductible. Confidence Learning Center is a recognized 501 (c)3 organization providing outdoor education and recreation experiences to persons of all ages with developmental disabilities. 5
Page 1: S p r i n g 2 0 0 9 Nisswa, Minneso
Page 7 and 8: DNR DOCK RULE REVISIONS Rosemary Go
Page 9 and 10: RAIN BARRELS: A WAY OF COLLECTING &
Page 11 and 12: RESERVOIR WATER LEVELS US Army Corp
Page 14 and 15: Gull Chain - Nisswa $995,000 Main G
Page 16 and 17: E-MAILS WANTED! We’re trying to c
Page 18 and 19: SAFETY AND RECREATIONAL REPORT Bob
Page 20 and 21: 2009 NEW MEMBERS AND DONATORS Welco
Page 22 and 23: MEET YOUR BOARD MEMBERS Bob Toborg
Page 24 and 25: GULL LAKE PROFILES Quarterdeck who
Page 26 and 27: GULL CHAIN OF LAKES ASSOCIATION PUB
Page 28: GULL CHAIN of LAKES ASSOCIATION Box

07-3081-Spring newslet - Gull Chain of Lakes Association

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