Local government has an important role to play in protecting the watershed of Lake Leelanau. Ideally, zoning ordinances should specifically address land use issues that can have a negative impact on the water quality, fish and wildlife habitats, and the natural and unspoiled character of the lake. Read on to learn about zoning provisions that can protect our lake.
Zoning’s Role in Protecting Lake Health
Local zoning plays a crucial role in protecting the health of Lake Leelanau and the surrounding watershed by regulating land use and development activities (Click here if you need a refresher on the definition of a watershed). The following are some of the issues zoning ordinances can address:
1. Protecting water quality and habitat:
- Preserving and restoring buffer zones: Zoning can require the preservation and restoration of vegetated buffer zones along the shoreline and creeks, which provide habitat, act as natural filters to prevent pollutants and sediment from entering the lake, and preserve the natural beauty of the shoreline.
- Regulating septic systems: Zoning can go above and beyond county septic ordinances to ensure that septic systems are inspected and maintained to prevent sewage from contaminating groundwater and eventually the lake.
- Regulating boats and docks: Zoning Ordinances can prevent overcrowding, and protect aquatic habitats by limiting the size and length of docks, the number of boats per dock and regulating keyhole access (allowing owners of lots that are not on the lakefront to utilize lakefront parcels).
2. Managing stormwater runoff:
- Requiring stormwater management practices: Unchecked stormwater runoff can introduce harmful pollutants and sediment into lakes and streams. Zoning can mandate the use of stormwater management practices such as rain gardens or limit the use of impervious surfaces so the ground can capture and filter stormwater runoff before it reaches the lake.
3. Promoting sustainable development:
- Encouraging responsible land use: Zoning can promote sustainable development practices that minimize the impact on the lake and watershed by establishing minimum parcel sizes, minimum parcel width at the waterfront, and setbacks for buildings and impervious surfaces.
Through a proactive effort to regulate land use and development activities, our township planning commissions can play a critical role in preserving and protecting clean water, important habitats and the physical beauty of Lake Leelanau and its watershed for current and future generations.
Recommended Shoreline Zoning Provisions
Lake Leelanau Lake Association’s zoning initiative focuses on several interrelated goals:
- Conserving natural shoreline areas to preserve aesthetics and important wildlife habitats.
- Protecting against the negative impacts of stormwater runoff, including sedimentation, erosion and the introduction of pollutants and harmful nutrients.
- Addressing keyholing and the actions by riparians who grant access to an unreasonable number of non-riparians.
LLLA educates our local townships about the impacts on the water quality and habit of land use policies and provides the examples of best practices for protecting water quality.
Examples of Zoning in Other Communities
Finding the correct balance between land owner rights and protection and preservation of the common good is a quandary facing all planning commissions around the county, including in our townships that border the lake. Studying the zoning ordinances and language of other communities and their successes and shortcomings can inform policies.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources provides an easy-to-read summary of locally innovative standards for shoreland regulation including lot size, impervious surfaces, retaining walls and riprap, setbacks, and near-shore vegetation.
Closer to home, on Lake Charlevoix, Evangeline Township, collaborated with the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council, to perform studies that guided amendments to the master plan. The amendments to the zoning ordinance included limiting impervious surfaces and incorporating a landscape buffer.
Township Meetings
We encourage everyone to familiarize themselves with their township’s zoning ordinance and participate in planning commission meetings. Find the details for your township below to get started.