In addition to using good management practices to protect and improve water quality in your home, yard or farm, there are also opportunities for volunteers to help with District projects or events.
There are lots of ways you can help improve water quality!
Clean Water Clean-Up: Twice Annual Event
We are currently planning for fall 2021 events. Check back for more information in September 2021.
The Fall 2020 event was held over the weekend of Oct. 23-25 at Jeffers Pond Park (buckthorn removal) and the weekend of Oct 30-Nov 1 Sand Point Beach Park (leaf raking) due to an early snowfall the week before.
Last fall’s clean-up event looked a little different than usual to give volunteers more flexibility and to reduce the number of people present at the same time. Volunteers came any time over the course of the weekend and had the option of removing buckthorn at Jeffers Pond and/or raking leaves at Sand Point Beach!
As usual volunteers brought their own work gloves and tools to rake or remove buckthorn. Event is free and family-friendly. Volunteers were entered into drawing for door prizes from local businesses.
To reduce the spread of the coronavirus, we remind volunteers to maintain social distancing from people not from your household. Wearing a mask is recommended if you are not able to maintain a 6 foot distance between people from outside your household group. Participation in this event is voluntary and done at your own risk.
For questions, email Patty at pdronen@plslwd.org or call 952-447-4166.
Every spring and fall we host a Clean Water Clean-Up event to rake up leaves and remove buckthorn. This prevents the leaves from being carried down the storm drains into the lakes. Leaves contain significant amounts of phosphorus which can contribute to algae growth in lakes during the summer. Buckthorn is an invasive species which often takes over wooded areas, crowding out native species and degrading wildlife habitat. Check out our Facebook page for pictures from the event!
Don’t miss an event! Sign-up to receive an email reminder. Email pdronen@plslwd.org to be added to the notification list for this free, family-friendly event.
Carp Seining Event
When the District does a carp seine to remove carp from the lakes, we often need volunteers to help sort, weigh and measure the carp we catch. Please contact Maggie Karschnia at mkarschnia@plslwd.org or 952-447-9808 if you are interested in volunteering or want to be added to the seine notification list.
Occasional Restoration Events
The District has several shoreline and other restoration projects and occasionally needs volunteers to help out with plantings or other items. To be notified when volunteers are needed for restoration events, please email Patty Dronen at pdronen@plslwd.org to be added to our volunteer list.