Have you seen the special promotional section included in Madison Magazine’s June Issue? Please read below and find out why Clean Lakes Alliance is Crazy 4 Lakes — watch for short biographies of some of our stellar board members, Leslie Even, Michael Kosolcharoen, Bob Uphoff, and Jim Welsh. Also, look for a message from the Mayor Paul Soglin of Madison and Dane County Executive, Joe Parisi. The section includes a feature story titled “Partnership Makes it Possible” by Judy Dahl, and the 2013 State of the Lakes report, by Dea Larsen Converse.
Waves in the Watershed – Volume I, Issue 2
CLA launches the second year of our citizen water quality monitoring program, with over 40 near-shore sites and first in the nation mobile app integration in partnership with 100state, the City of Madison, and Dane County.
Welcome to Waves in the Watershed, an in-depth newsletter for donors of the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA). Waves in the Watershed is published every two months and details the progress that CLA is making toward our goal of reducing phosphorus in the Yahara watershed by 50% by 2025 and in engaging the community in our efforts.
Please note – the Lake-O-Gram will continue to be delivered each month to the inboxes of over 8,000 individuals who have expressed an interest in CLA’s initiatives and events. The Lake-O-Gram is a brief digest that promotes upcoming events and volunteer opportunities and includes highlights and snapshots of lake efforts in the watershed.
In Partnership,
The Clean Lakes Alliance Team
Lake-O-Gram Vol. IV Issue 4
Healthy Lakes. Healthy Community.
Volume IV, Issue 4
Here at the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA) office, we are counting down the days (and maybe even the minutes) until summer. Technically, there are still 19 days to go, but you don’t have to wait until 5:52 a.m. on June 21st to enjoy the lakes… just look at all the lake lovers on the Terrace!
Read on for updates on our water quality monitoring program, our lake user survey, information about summer lake events, and highlights of CLA and the lakes in the news!
WHAT IS THE LAKE-O-GRAM? The Lake-O-Gram is a monthly digest distributed through our website and e-mailed out to the surrounding communities to keep citizens up-to-date on the latest events and efforts taking place to protect and preserve the water quality of the Yahara watershed.
Lake-o-Gram Vol. IV Issue 3: Breakfast Recap, 2013 State of the Lakes Report
Mallards and loons and paddlers, oh my! As the weather warms up and the skies clear, there are plenty of opportunities for lake-lovers (like us!) to get outside.
Please read below for a brief digest of our upcoming programs & events, including a recap of the 3rd annual Save Our Lakes Community Breakfast and a link to the 2013 State of the Lakes report.
P.S. Be sure to watch the three new videos premiered at the Breakfast: The State of the Lakes; Schooling for Cleaner Lakes; Projects & Progress in the Watershed
Lake-O-Gram Vol. IV Issue 2
Greetings!
As the old saying goes, “April showers bring May flowers”. April, and the coming of spring, also brings the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA) new opportunities to continue protecting and improving our lakes! This Lake-o-Gram highlights upcoming events and programs, as well as recent announcements to share with the community. The CLA thanks all those who support its efforts.
– The CLA Team
Crazy 4 Lakes Run/Walk
The CLA in the Community
CLA Accomplishments
Please join us on Thursday, April 10, 2014 in welcoming back Dr. Doug Soldat, associate professor of soil science at UW-Madison, to Yahara Lakes 101 (YL101) for his presentation “Lawn Care, Soils and Water Quality”. Dr. Soldat was our very first YL101 speaker last May, and we are happy to welcome him back to the podium this spring.
DATE: Thursday, April 10, 2014
TIME:
7:30 am – Coffee, pastries & fruit
8:00 am – Presentation
9:00 am – Q & A
7:30 am – Coffee, pastries & fruit
8:00 am – Presentation
9:00 am – Q & A
LOCATION: Bluephies Café at Verex Building
(150 E. Gilman St.) Located on Level B
(150 E. Gilman St.) Located on Level B
PRICING: Admission is $10 at the door or free to Friends of Clean Lakes. Become a Friend today!
Doug will provide information on:
- How green lawns and clean lakes need not be mutually exclusive. In fact, dense vegetation can play an important role in protecting surface waters from nutrient runoff.
- How soil properties and the negative consequences of over-management play a critical but often overlooked role in environmental protection and pollution.
- The primary pathways of nutrient losses from urban environments and discuss some practical and effective strategies for keeping nutrients out of the lake.
About Doug:
Dr. Doug Soldat is a Wisconsin native and a Ph.D. associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Department of Soil Science, specializing in turfgrass and urban soil management. He earned a Ph.D. at Cornell University studying how phosphorus is lost from lawns. At Wisconsin, he advises the students in the turfgrass and grounds maintenance program, and teaches three classes including “Turfgrass Nutrient and Water Management” and “Lawns, Society and the Environment”. His research program focuses on finding ways to maintain turfgrass for optimum function using fewer inputs of nutrients, pesticides and water.
*Please Note*
PARKING: Please park in James Madison Park or in parking ramps listed below. No Parking on East Gilman St. from 8 a.m. to noon and in the Verex Plaza surface lot or underground lot.
PLEASE REGISTER IN ADVANCE: Yahara Lakes 101
The Save Our Lakes event is a community breakfast and the annual meeting of the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA). Save Our Lakes was created to bring the community together to review our progress towards cleaner, healthier lakes. This event is a time to celebrate and assess the past year and to launch new programs and initiatives for the year ahead. Presentations include the State of the Lakes report– the community report card for water quality in the Yahara lakes – and the CLA Annual Report, presented this year as a combined report.
DATE: Friday, April 25, 2014
TIME: 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
LOCATION:
Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center,
Main Exhibit Hall
PRICING:
$1,000 per table of 10
$100 per seat
$35 per student seat
This year’s theme is “Schooling for Cleaner Lakes”. Just like fish that school together in the same direction, this theme recognizes that many groups and entities are working toward a shared goal of cleaner lakes.
This spring, the CLA and American Family Insurance DreamBank invited the public to participate in the Schooling for Cleaner Lakes community art project. The idea for this initiative, designed to increase understanding of our lake ecosystems, materialized in response to an exhibit at DreamBank that identified “clean lakes” as a top priority for the Madison community. The CLA and DreamBank encourage dreamers of all ages to participate in their hands-on, creative project. For more information, please visit Schooling for Cleaner Lakes.
2014 Breakfast Speakers:
Lake-O-Gram Vol. IV Issue 1
Welcome to the first Lake-o-Gram of 2014!
Snowmelt season is upon us, and spring is right around the corner! As we wrap up a [very long] season of enjoying our frozen lakes with cross country skiing, ice skating and ice fishing, we’re excited to look ahead to the thaw. Here at Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA), we’re gearing up for spring programming and projects, and we hope you get involved. Read on for more on these opportunities.
In Partnership,
The Clean Lakes Alliance Team
Waves in the Watershed – Volume I, Issue 1
Welcome to Waves in the Watershed, an in-depth newsletter for donors of the Clean Lakes Alliance (CLA). Waves in the Watershed will come out every two months and will detail the progress that the CLA is making toward our goal of reducing phosphorus in the Yahara watershed by 50% by 2025 and in engaging the community in our efforts.
Please note – the Lake-o-Gram will continue to be delivered to the inboxes of over 7000 individuals who have expressed a general interest in the CLA’s initiatives and events. The Lake-o-Gram is a brief digest that promotes upcoming events and volunteer opportunities and includes highlights and snapshots of what we’re working on.
In Partnership,
The Clean Lakes Alliance Executive Team
Don Heilman, James Tye and Elizabeth Katt-Reinders
Rain, Leaves and Lakes Don’t Mix
What do leaves in the streets have to do with algae in the lakes? Rainfall and stormwater that run through streets and gutters leach phosphorus from fallen leaves and carry the nutrient-rich “tea” down the storm drains and straight to the lakes. Phosphorus is the nutrient that drives algae growth; so let’s do our part to stop leaf litter leaching!
Lake-O-Gram Vol. III Issue 6
The seasons are changing, and so is the focus of the Clean Lakes Alliance! For our first two and half years as an organization, we have focused on building an alliance of community partners and strategically planning and prioritizing the work of lake improvement and protection. Three years in, we are now transitioning from the planning phase to implementation and community engagement.
While we continue to expand our educational and fundraising events, we’ve been hard at work behind the scenes, collaborating with our partners at the County, the University, the farming community, and many others across the watershed to lay the foundation for practices and projects that will reduce phosphorus loading to the lakes. We will continue to move these projects forward and share the good news as progress unfolds.
Please visit our website to view our 2012 Annual Report, which features details on the progress we’ve made and what lies ahead in the year to come. Read on below for this month’s updates.
Lake-O-Gram Vol. III Issue 5
612699 is the grand prize winner of the raffle for Loop the Lake participants. See below for details.
Even though it was one of the coldest summer days on record, we had a huge crowd at the Clean Lakes Festival this past Saturday! We want to extend a big thank you to all who attended the Festival and our Loop the Lake ride.
We had a great turnout for our inaugural community bike ride, Loop the Lake, around Lake Monona with over 150 riders crossing the finish line. Along the ride, participants learned about local lake ecology and tried their hands at citizen water quality monitoring while staying hydrated.
