What’s in This Issue
This month’s issue features a preview of our participation in next month’s Lake Leelanau Street Fair, updates on our EWM control and swimmer’s itch prevention programs, and the results so far of our 2021 social media campaign. We hope you find this ebulletin informative and welcome any feedback. If you have any comments, please send them to [email protected]
Visit Us on September 11 at Lake Leelanau’s Street Fair
We’re planning lots for you to see and do at our booth at Lake Leelanau’s Street Fair on Saturday, September 11. Besides meeting our tireless volunteers, you’ll be able to attend scheduled Q&A sessions with our experts to learn about our fight to control Eurasian Water Milfoil (EWM), our brand new boat-cleaning station at the Bingham boat launch, and our lake stewardship program. We’ll have our high-tech underwater drone and live samples of EWM on display, and you will also be able to buy your own poster of the beautiful painting which graces the front cover of our 2021 annual report. The fair starts at 11am and goes until 6pm.
Latest News About EWM Control
Following EGLE’s approval, in the closing days of July the team of volunteers led by our Lake Biologist Brian Price installed about 1.1 acres of new burlap barriers on six large EWM infestations. This month’s header photo shows the team in action. Now, as the season winds down, DASH divers are busy hand-pulling EWM from other, medium-sized sites, while barrier sites for 2022 are already being mapped. We’re always on the look-out for photos of our EWM experts at work so, if you see one of our DASH or volunteer crews in action on the lake, feel free to take a photo and send it to us at [email protected].
2021 Swimmer’s Itch Reporting Ends Next Week
A summary of reported swimmer’s itch cases through August 22 is available here. The last date for reporting cases in our online survey tool will be September 7. So far, the number of cases reported this year has been quite low compared to past years. The reasons for this will be explored in our 2021 annual swimmer’s itch report, which will be published on our website after the season ends. Click here if you’d like to see our annual swimmer’s itch reports from previous years.
Social Media – We’re Out There!
If you’ve noticed an uptick in our social media activity during the past few months – we’re delighted! That’s the goal of our campaign which began in March of this year and has produced over 40 Facebook and Instagram posts in the past six months. Beautiful sights, lake preservation programs, seasonal events and fun facts have all been featured in our posts. During this period, our number of Facebook followers increased by 21% and the average engagement rate of the people who viewed our posts was an impressive 8%. The outright winner in popularity was our August 7 Facebook post featuring the burlap barrier photo shown above, which reached over 9,000 people! If you follow us on Facebook and Instagram, help us grow our social media community by sharing any posts which you like with your friends and family.
Help Your Friends and Neighbors Stay Informed
Do you have friends or neighbors who care about the quality and beauty of Lake Leelanau but don’t receive our ebulletins? If so, please forward this ebulletin to them and all they have to do is reply with their name to [email protected]. We’ll take care of adding them to our mailing list for future issues.
Lake Leelanau Lake Association is a non-profit organization led by and for individuals, families and businesses who support its mission to protect and enhance the quality and beauty of Lake Leelanau and its surrounding watershed for current and future generations. If you would like to make a donation to support our programs, you can do so here on our website. If you would like to help our programs as a volunteer, send a message to [email protected]