RLAA Board Meeting - Possible Agenda items for November 2009 meeting=

RLAA Board Meeting Minutes for December 9, 2010 =

Location: Maple Grove Library (Room 105) = &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &= nbsp; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Time: 7:00 pm

Call to Order at 7:05

Present - Bill Kidder, George Schneider, Rick Stulac, Wade Quale, Scott Roeglin
Absent - Larry Bick, J= oy Roeglin, Nika Rybinski
Guests - James Johnson= from Freshwater Scientific Services (FSS)

Approve this Agenda

No changes made to age= nda

Introduction of Board M= embers and Guests (George)
Fre= shwater Scientific Services Formal Project Presentation (James Johnson) 7:10-8= :35

James presented his summary reports on the 2 lake projects he conducted this past season with a Powerpoint deck. He wi= ll formally send us the completed presentation along with billing invoic= e by the end of December.

Carp Exclosure study

2 Objectives for this project:

Are the carp causing an impact on plant growth?

Which plants do best in Rice Lake?

James reviewed the project plan and steps taken to come up with his resul= ts.

Yes, carp are causing an impact on plant growth in the lake. If the carp are removed we will see much more vegetation in the water, which in turn will improve the water quality.

Water Stargrass and Wild Celery did the best= in sample test plots during the project. Both species are native to <= st1:PlaceName w:st=3D"on">Rice Lake (were harvested in the West Bay) and s= hould survive if given the opportunity. Flatstem Pondweed, also native to the lake, did reasonably well.

Plant varieties brought in from Weaver Lake did n= ot do as well in the test plot areas. These included Bushy Pondweed and = Chara.

Suggested next steps to accomplish our goal to improve water quality:=

Insure that the RLAA membership understands that by removing carp, you increase the vegetation growth, which may be a nuisance in some ar= eas (along shorelines, in shallows, etc.).

Measure the carp impact (track them with radio telemetry devices). This wi= ll allow us to establish a benchmark for measuring the number of carp= in the lake and how many are eventually removed.
Get rid of carp population.

Encourage additional plant growth with either new plants or allow existing o= nes to spread on their own.

Zooplankton study

Objectives for this study included:

What types are in the lake?

How abundant are they?

How big are they?

Any seasonal changes?

The study revealed that the lake does have a high number of both Daphenia (larger size) and Ceriodaphenia (smaller) zooplankton. Both can sustain a native game fish populati= on. James explained that zooplankton is consumed by fish during early stages of growth, and our lake has a high number of these organisms present. Zooplankton themselves are big algae eaters, except for the blue-green toxic algae varieties which they are not as willing to consume.

Final summary data for both of these projects will be posted on the RLAA website when they become available by the end of 2010.

Jame= s was excused from the meeting after answering some questions from the group about these projects as well as general inquiries about the lake.

Treasurer Report (Rick)=

Any = new members since last meeting?

= No new members since our last meeting.

Curr= ent finances

Upco= ming expenditures/bills

Hom= estead Web Services charge for $50 (2011)

Rick motioned that RLAA reimburse George Schneider for %50 of his personal Homestead= website annual fee of $50.

The board members voted 5-0 in favor of that motion.<= /i>

Old Business= <= /li>

Rough Fish Removal pro= ject (Nika).

Nika was unable to at= tend tonight's meeting, but she had previously sent a message stating that Jeff has secured a DNR permit for Rice Lake to remove carp this winter.

However, we still need to find out the timeframe so we can pursue permit from the City.

Also need to have Jeff provide insurance policy which removes any liabil= ity by the City.

City requirements for permit

RLAA Board needs to determine if we can meet the City requirements for obtaining a Special Use Permit for access to the lake by Riedemann Fisheries.
City suggests submitting the permit request at least 1 month prior to desired action.

Q3 2010 Newsletter (Ge= orge)

·         Posted on RLAA website on November 27. Recei= ved one response back (positive) on the issue.

·         Notification sent by e-mail to all members (= 104) with link to website (no attachment was sent).

On-Going Business =

E= lm Creek Watershed TMDL Project Plan (George)

·         Next stakeholders meeting scheduled for January 20 at Plymouth City Hall.

·         New Project Manager is Rich Brasch from Three Rivers Parks District (who has rece= ived our Lake Management Plan and is aware of our intentions on how to improve w= ater quality).

C= ontinue discussions on 2010-2011 projects

·         Potential 2011 Projects for this winter/early spring include:

o&nb= sp;       Dredging out boat ramp channel

§      =    Scott working with Rick Lestina on requirements to get this done.

§      =    City has asked that RLAA help keep the a= rea free of snow so ice is more formed for the excavation equipment later this winter.

o&nb= sp;       Potential Curlyleaf Pondweed problems in 2011?

§      =    Don't plan for a drawdown in 2010-2011, = but reach out to membership for possible drawdown in 2011-2012 if necessary.

o&nb= sp;       Plant Survey in 2011

§      =    Don't plan for one in 2011, but if we ne= ed to do one, request it then.

o&nb= sp;       Carp Removal in 2011

§      =    This project is still a possibility for = 2011.

§      =    Do we want to entertain some input from = Dr. Peter Sorenson on the topic?

&= middot;      =    To Do: George will = reach out to Dr. Sorenson to see what he may have to offer to our rough fish dile= mma.

S= torm Water Drain Inventory (Bill)

·         Plan on revisiting this next spring (201= 1)

·         Scott asked if we could have the City ch= eck out the cistern on Elm Creek south of County Road 30 located between the No= rd and Grefe properties.

Action Item: George checked with the Ci= ty to get more information on it. Cistern is a Sanitary Sewer and not Storm Sewer. Need to check further with Public Works department (pending)= .

New Business=

RLAA Asset Inventory <= /span>(George)=

Due= to a need to relocate existing RLAA assets (winter aerator, PVC pipes, and other related materials) elsewhere than current City Public Works garage, began taking inventory of our current assets.

Geo= rge started a spreadsheet to track what we have and where it can be stor= ed.

Lar= ry has graciously offered to provide storage under his deck for the long-te= rm storage items (winter aerator & carp exclosures).

Sho= rt-term storage items (lake rakes, weed cutters, annual meeting signs) will = be stored at George's home.

Nik= a has volunteered her pickup truck to help us transport to new storage location (from = City garage on 93^rd and Fernbrook = to Larry's house on Gl= acier Lane).

Ge= orge will coordinate that removal with Frank Kampel= from Public Works department.

Website update = (George)=

Tra= cking hits on various pages and posting results on our website by month. (http://ricelake.homestead.com/files/RL_Site_Visits_2010.mht)

New= sletter page had 40 visits between 11/27-12/1 and nothing since. Is there a better way to get people to acknowledge and read our newsletters?=

Eelpout in Rice Lake? (Geor= ge)

Fou= nd an eelpout "spry" in my minnow trap when I pulled it out in e= arly November. Marshal Alsaker mentioned they caught a 12" eelpout on the lower side of the dam this year.

Any= one else observe any this year?

No= , but it was acknowledge that eelpout are not rare and are found in many lakes throughout the state.

Task Team Updates<= /o:p>

Lake Management (George)

Not= hing new to report.

Memb= ership (Rick/George)

Star Lakes grant opportunities - clarification on qualifications (Nika).

Nika has asked for some help on this to submit a request to Star Lakes.

Other Business?

None.

Next Meeting date =

Adjournment = at 8:50

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M= inutes (draft) written by George Schneider 12/11/10

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<= span style=3D'mso-tab-count:1'>        &= nbsp;      Rice Lake Area Association website =3D http://www.ricelakemn.com