Fiscal Year 2013 Recommended Budget Book - Lake County

Public Works• The Mosquito and Aquatic Plant Management Section of the Environmental Services Division strives to protect andmaintain the natural integrity and biodiversity of public water bodies in Lake County by reducing invasive aquatic plantinfestations and promoting the growth of native aquatic vegetation. To achieve this goal, a more efficient process ofassigning the Aquatic Biologist as the lead employee to perform water body surveys and post-treatment inspections willbe needed. Scheduling and treatment strategies will be needed to conform to the requirements of the National PollutantDischarge Elimination System (NPDES) state generic permit for aquatic plant management. The two BiologicalAssociate employees will have primary responsibility for treatment applications and equipment calibration. The 1,847projected total acres to be treated for Fiscal Year 2013 confirms the downward trend from previous years. This continuedreduction indicates the management philosophy of maintenance level control (early detection/rapid response) appears tobe successful.Appearance of Lake County is Esthetically Pleasing and Well Designed:• The Engineering Division uses uniform countywide design standards that are applied to county road corridors throughengineering planning and design, and through the development approval process. It is anticipated that the adoption ofrevised Land Development Regulations will update older regulations to help achieve the Board of CountyCommissioners’ (BCC) desired goals.• Surface water and springs monitoring programs used by the Adopt-A-Lake program to protect and restore our lakesprovides Lake County citizens with water quality information which is important to residents’ lifestyles. Improvingwater quality improves the overall appearance of the lake. The Adopt-A-Lake program addresses litter control around“adopted” lakes which improves the appearance. The Adopt-a-Lake Program also provides funding/assistance to citizensfor the installation of beneficial aquatic plants along shorelines which helps to not only protect water quality butbeautifies the lake. Adequate facilities, equipment, personnel, volunteers and funding through the Adopt-A-LakeProgram will be instrumental in accomplishing these goals. Water quality does not improve rapidly, however; theseprograms will ensure we take steps in the right direction. The removal of trash from lakes shows an immediate visualimprovement and hopefully will deter others from littering, and the addition of aquatic plants to shorelines shouldimprove water quality, beautify the area and provide habitat for butterflies, fish and other wildlife.F - 142