News from the Wisconsin Association of Lakes

January 2009 

• Contact your legislators! Phosphorus lawn fertilizer bill is looking for co-sponsors for 2009 session
• Join us February 25th for Conservation Lobby Day
• Great Lakes Compact went into effect December 8th 
• Ice anglers urged to follow VHS rules
• Weak Federal ballast water rule not good enough for Wisconsin
• Do you know a person or group who is doing extraordinary things for your lake?
• Interested in more lake news? Get The Lake Connection and special e-mail bulletins from WAL

Contact your legislators! Phosphorus lawn fertilizer bill is looking for co-sponsors for 2009 session
	The 2009 legislative session is almost upon us, and WAL is pleased to report that Senators Miller and Cowles and Representatives Black and Bies are circulating a bill for co-sponsorship (LRB 09/06761) that would restrict phosphorus in lawn fertilizer. This bill reflects the text used in the original proposal WAL promoted last legislative session, which ultimately passed the state Senate, but did not pass the Assembly. The bill prohibits the display, sale and use of lawn fertilizer containing Phosphorus (with very limited exceptions).  If passed, this bill would mark a significant step forward in the efforts to curb the avalanche of nutrients that pollute lakes. Phosphorus runoff from lawns goes directly into surface waters, fueling smelly algae blooms and nuisance plant growth, depriving fish of oxygen, and making summertime unpleasant for property owners and recreational users on some of Wisconsin’s beautiful lakes. WAL encourages all members to contact their state Senators and Representatives and encourage them to add their names to the bill (LRB 09/06761) as co-sponsors. Co-sponsors must sign on their support for the bill by Friday, January 9, 2009. The more co-sponsors a bill has the more legislative support it has, so make sure your legislators know how phosphorus is impacting your lake and how important  a statewide phosphorus free lawn fertilizer law is to you and your lake community. WAL encourages county-wide lake groups, lake districts, and lake associations to send this request on to their memberships.  Look up your state legislator’s contact information.
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Join us February 25th for Conservation Lobby Day
											Join citizens from across Wisconsin at the state Capitol on February 25, 2009, to share your lake conservation values with Legislators. Conservation Lobby Day is an empowering experience where hundreds of citizen speak with a unified voice and let legislators know the tremendous support that exists for conservation. On Conservation Lobby Day, you will speak to both your state Representative and state Senator about key conservation issues. In addition, you will receive skill and issue trainings that you can take away and apply when advocating back home. You will also have the opportunity to meet and network with others that share your conservation values. By taking the time to communicate with your legislator you have the opportunity to educate your legislator about the details of lake related bills, how those bills will affect the resources and people in their district, and ask for their support and vote for Conservation Priority issues In 2009-2010, the conservation community will be working to make sure: Wisconsin manages groundwater resources to protect drinking water supplies, lakes, streams, and wetlands.  Wisconsin returns to an Independent DNR Secretary and has timely votes on DNR Board Appointments. Wisconsin adopts a strong statewide plan to tackle global warming. Wisconsin protects drinking water supplies by making sure we safely spread agricultural, municipal, and industrial waste. To RSVP, visit www.conservationvoters.org. RSVP deadline is Feb. 13th.
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Great Lakes Compact went into effect December 8th
											The Great Lakes Compact took effect Dec. 8. The Great Lakes, which hold one-fifth of the world's fresh surface water, are now protected under an international agreement. The agreement was signed by President George Bush on Oct. 3, 2008 following its passage by eight state legislatures and a swift ride through the U.S. Congress. A companion agreement with two Canadian provinces takes effect Dec. 8. The Great Lakes Compact is a regional agreement between the eight Great Lakes states and two Canadian Provinces that aims to establish a legal framework to prevent large scale diversions of Great Lakes’ water out of the region, sets a standard for states to review proposed uses of Great Lakes water, and sets parameters withdrawal of Great Lakes water by communities within the Great Lakes basin. The Compact also requires Great Lakes states to develop and implement a water conservation and efficiency program. The compact’s Dec. 8 effective date brings immediate requirements for more than 1,500 existing municipalities, manufacturers, irrigators and other operations in Wisconsin that have the capacity to withdraw large volumes of water under existing permits. For now, users within the Great Lakes basin with the capacity to withdraw 100,000 gallons per day or more in any 30 day period need to register with the DNR and start reporting their annual water use as part of the compact’s requirement that states track Great Lakes water use. These high volume uses will be reviewed for possible impacts on lakes, streams and other waters if the proposed new or increased water withdrawal is more than 1 million gallons per day for 30 consecutive days. Eventually, residential water users in Wisconsin and other Great Lakes state will likely see changes aimed at spurring them to save water and use it more efficiently. The Department of Natural Resources is developing a series of administrative rules to implement additional aspects of the Compact agreement.
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Ice anglers urged to follow VHS rules
											With a new statewide poll showing that some anglers aren’t taking all needed steps to prevent spreading VHS fish disease, state fisheries officials are asking anglers to redouble efforts year-round, including during winter when water temperatures are the coldest and the disease is most active in fish. VHS, or viral hemorrhagic septicemia, is not a threat to people or pets but it’s a significant fish disease and can cause fish to bleed to death. VHS can infect 37 different species of fish, including game fish and panfish favorites including walleye, bluegill, trout and muskellunge. The disease has demonstrated in other countries and Great Lakes states the potential to cause large fish kills, long-term reductions in wild fish populations, and severe economic impacts. VHS was first detected in Wisconsin in fish from the Lake Winnebago System in early May 2007. Sampling in 2008 showed that VHS hadn’t spread beyond Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan; a credit to all anglers who followed the VHS rules. A full listing of permanent VHS rules approved earlier this year can be found online. Printed copies of “Minnows as Bait,” (pdf) a brochure explaining the rules are available in DNR service centers and regional offices
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Weak Federal ballast water rule not good enough for Wisconsin
						When ocean going ships—called “salties”—flush their ballast water tanks, they can deposit exotic stowaways directly into the Great Lakes. Some of these hitchhikers—zebra mussels, sea lampreys, viral hemorrhagic septicemia, and the New Zealand mud snail—have thrived in their new habitats, becoming invasive species that are causing big ecological and economic damage. Most recent invasive species have entered the Great Lakes via saltie ballast water. The Great Lakes are currently home to 185 invasive species, with a new invasive being discovered every six months. Ballast water is used to steady ships in open seas and is often discharged when ships arrive in port to take on a load of cargo. When a ship drops a load of cargo at one Great Lakes port, it often takes on ballast water before steaming to another Great Lakes port. "Empty" ballast tanks can still hold puddles of water and muck, both of which can be teeming with life. The Federal Clean Water Act requires that anyone discharging “biological materials” (such as aquatic invasive species and diseases) into Wisconsin waters have a discharge permit. In 2006, a Federal Court ruled that ballast water met the definition of “biological pollution”, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must begin regulating ballast water discharges from freighters under the Clean Water Act by Sept. 30, 2008. But the EPA’s proposed water pollution permit does not require ballast treatment to stop invading species. In March 2008, the Department of Natural Resources determined it has legal authority to regulate ballast water discharges under current law that implements the Federal Clean Water Act. The determination was made in response to a December 5, 2007 petition by 13 state, national and local conservation groups (including the Wisconsin Association of Lakes) which called for the regulation of Great Lakes ballast water containing aquatic invasive species and diseases from international ships. The Department has been developing discharge permits for international ships in order to eliminate the release of invasive species into Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. The Department says the new Federal EPA rules aren’t good enough, and has developed new guidelines similar to water quality regulations adopted by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in September, requiring all ship owners to treat ballast to kill invasive species by 2016. Minnesota developed the rules under its own state permit, and Wisconsin now will follow suit, superseding the federal permit.
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Do you know a person or group doing extraordinary things for your lake?
						The Wisconsin Lakes Partnership presents the Lake Stewardship Awards each year at the Wisconsin Lakes Convention to celebrate the outstanding volunteer and professional efforts made to protect and improve our lakes.  The Stewardship Awards represent our best collective effort to pay tribute to all the incredible work that goes into securing a bright future for Wisconsin’s lakes.  The LakeStewardship award categories are: citizen, organized group, public service, educator, youth, and business. More information about the Stewardship Awards and an online form for submitting nominations are on the UW Extension Lakes website. Contact Wisconsin Association of Lakes for more information or questions: 608-661-4313 (Toll-free in WI only 800-542-5253), or email wal@wisconsinlakes.org
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Interested in more lake news? Get The Lake Connection and special e-mail bulletins from WAL
	Our monthly e-lake letter focuses on current events and is a free service we provide for anyone interested in lakes. But WAL members receive much more. Our quarterly print publication, The Lake Connection, has in-depth articles about lake science and research that helps us better understand our lakes, analysis of legislative and agency policy proposals that may affect lakes, updates on WAL policy initiatives, success stories from local lake groups across the state, and information about WAL's upcoming events and lake education opportunities. Special e-mail bulletins and ActionAlertsLakes help our lake organization and individual members stay connected to the action at the state Capital, and keep their own memberships informed and participating in the creation of lake policy Wisconsin Association of Lakes members receive: WAL’s quarterly print publication, The Lake Connection. WAL’s special e-mail bulletins and Action Alerts analysis of lake policy issues, their potential effect on lakes, and talking points on various bills and administrative rules notification of opportunities for citizens to participate in the policy making process (public hearings, listening sessions, comment periods) guidance on the when, whos, and hows of contacting decision makers on specific issues sample letters to legislators, sample resolutions, and press releases tracking progress of WAL policy initiatives and lake related bills and rules as they move through the legislature special announcements about lake education and other events membership surveys, and opportunities for input on member services.  Become a WAL member today!
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