REPORT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY COMMITTEE

by Jim Schwartz, Co-Chair

CLARITY READINGS are off to a reasonably good start again this year. Jim and Toni Schwartz, who measure transparency at least weekly after they arrive in April, report that readings ranged from 17' to 22' at the lake's deepest spot and 15' to 20' in Long Bay. Those figures compare favorably with early findings of the last several years, reassuring evidence that the lake's status remains reasonably stable. Hank Sandvig, who also measures clarity from time to time, reports readings that run from 11' to 17', but said they were taken in windy conditions after a heavy rain. Both tend to complicate measurements. Enrichment from rainfall stimulates algae growth and wind roughens the surface, impairing vision.

OUR FIRST ROUND of lake water sampling, done in mid-May, found total phosphorus (TP) levels about the same as last year at the three sites tested annually (Main Lake, Kenfield Bay and Long Bay). Lundstrom's Bay TP was exactly the same as it was when last tested three years ago. Total nitrogen (TN) concentrations were up slightly for Kenfield Bay and Long Bay, down a bit for the Main Lake and up marginally for Lundstrom's Bay. None of the variations is considered to be significant.

Swamp water readings from the peripheral wetlands that surround Ten Mile presented a somewhat different story. Their TP figures continue to be substantially higher than those of the lake, ranging from as little as twice as much to one swamp that measured more than 70 times the usual lake levels.

WHEN THE NEW TMLA HANDBOOK is distributed, a pamphlet entitled Property Stewardship Guidelines will be included. Gail Becher, Committee Co-Chair, has been working on the publication for more than a year and has collected a great deal of information on property management, county shoreland ordinances, building requirements and the like that Ten Mile residents will find extremely helpful. Read it for useful tips as soon as you receive your new Handbook.

TWO COMMITTEE MEMBERS, Marty McCleery and Pat Carey, will be working on a pair of studies over the next several months. Marty intends to sample groundwater from wells around the lake, analyze the samples for chemical content and correlate what he finds with existing lake water data. Pat intends to pull together what he can find about solar intensity history for this region, reasoning that the amount of sunlight over time influences Ten Mile's water clarity and vegetation density.

The North Ten Mile Lake Cluster Sewer Project is the recipient of a Year 2000 County Achievement Award by the Association of Minnesota Counties (AMC). AMC President Tom Delaney, who is a County Commissioner of Chisago County, presented the award (along with awards to seven other counties) at AMC's annual conference in Rochester in December. All recipients were nominated by their counties; winners were selected by a committee of county officials chaired by AMC First Vice President, Tony Bennett, a Ramsey County Commissioner. Craig Gilbertson, of Cass County Environmental Services, accepted the award for all participants in the Ten Mile Lake Project.

An article in the Summer 1999 issue of this Newsletter described the North Ten Mile Project as it was in its development stage. The project was necessary because septic systems along the North Shore were failing and the homeowners had no space to develop new individual systems, because of the narrow strip of land they occupy between the lake and County Road 50, beyond which stretches a broad swamp. Instead, as authorized by a fairly recent Minnesota statute, the homeowners formed a Subordinate Services District to develop a new wastewater treatment system serving 22 properties.

Cass County assisted the project by making County land available by permanent easement for the drainfield, and through assistance and advice of County staff as the project went forward. The Tri-County Leach Lake Watershed Project (TCLLWP) granted funds toward design of the project. Finally, a federal grant provided most of the funds for construction of the project. A committee of homeowners chaired by Jerry Mills put in hours of work to bring the whole project together, prepare grant applications, and see the project through to completion. The committee, now chaired by Tim Thatcher, continues to oversee the operation of the system.

EAGLES AND LEAD POISONING - A FOLLOWUP REPORT

by Sarah Cox
Editor

Last summer this newsletter ran a brief article about the danger to loons and eagles in the use of lead sinkers by fishermen. (See "Loons and Eagles - Yes! Lead Sinkers - No!" TMLA Newsletter, Summer, 2000.) Those of you who subscribe to the Walker Pilot-Independent or occasionally check the TMLA Website saw the truth of that article borne out this winter, in news of the discovery of a disabled eagle by Christian Bliska on December 10 while driving away from the lake with his family. They spotted the eagle in a ditch by the road near the lake home of Christian's mother, Molly Bliska. When spotted, the eagle did not fly off but hobbled into the woods. Asked for help by Christian, Molly checked on the eagle and found it agitated but still unable to fly. Christian decided to notify the University of Minnesota=s Raptor Center, a nationally known rehabilitation center for birds of prey. Ultimately, Christian, having arrived in Minneapolis, headed back to Hackensack in his own plane, along with his daughter, Anna, and Terry Headley, a volunteer with the Raptor Center. The Bliskas and Terry were able to capture the eagle and deliver it to the Raptor Center, where the eagle was sedated and X-rayed.

Since no injuries were found, the Center team suspected lead poisoning; blood analysis showed a lead concentration of 3.34 parts per million - well above the expected fatal level. The eagle was placed in treatment, initially seemed to respond, but died on December 16. Dr. Pat Redig, director of the Raptor Center, believed that the eagle died of "acute heart failure, ... [since] lead is toxic to heart muscles ... as well as nervous tissues throughout the body."

The Eagle, estimated to be at least five years old, was a female weighing about twelve pounds. Dr. Redig believed the eagle had gotten one exposure to a small amount of lead which remained in the stomach only a few days, probably three to five days before the eagle was found. Eagles ingest lead when feeding on lead-contaminated fish or waterfowl, or gut piles left in the woods by deer hunters. The effects include anemia, anorexia, vision and motor-skill impairment, weight loss, vomiting and diarrhea, as well as increased susceptibility to disease. While lead shot has been outlawed for waterfowl hunting, it is still legal for game hunting, and is still widely used for fishing sinkers. The Raptor Center, which treats some 120 bald eagles every year, reports that one-quarter of these suffer from lead poisoning.

If you like to watch the eagle make its swooping fishing runs over Ten Mile Lake in the early evening, put aside those lead sinkers and discard your lead-shot shells. If not, whatever your intended quarry, you may be killing an eagle.

[Taken from articles by Gail DeBoer, Walker Pilot Independent, December 21, 2000.]

ROADWORK REPORTS

PLANS GO FORWARD FOR CSAH 71 & 50

by Rebecca Hauschild, WSB & Associates

County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 71

Cass County is proposing improvements to CSAH 71 from CSAH 6 to CSAH 50 for a total length of 7.3 miles, tentatively scheduled for construction in 2003. A large portion of the route is through the Chippewa National Forest and traverses the northwesterly side of Ten Mile Lake. The roadway has been classified as a Natural Preservation Route by the State of Minnesota. This allows for a more flexible roadway design. The design will focus on preserving the natural environment, improving safety, and providing for non-motorized recreational use.

County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 50

Cass County is proposing improvements to CSAH 50 from CSAH 71 to Trunk Highway 371 for a total length of 1.7 miles. This road runs along the northeasterly side of Ten Mile Lake, and southerly side of Portage Lake. The improvement proposes to analyze alternative concepts for the area which is heavily developed between Ten Mile Lake and the large wetland complex. A hydrologic design committee is planned to be assembled for this project and will incorporate the ongoing studies by the Ten Mile Lake Association, the University of Minnesota Duluth and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency as part of the improvements.

A PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM, comprised of local representatives and oversight agencies, has been established to promote input and cooperation for the design of each of these projects. If you have any questions regarding either of the above projects, please contact David Enblom, Cass County Engineer at (218) 547-1211, Ext. 101 or Ron Bray, WSB & Associates, Inc. at (888) 541-4800, Ext. 177.

HIGHWAY SURFACE TREATMENTS

by Jim Schwartz, Associate Editor

SEVERAL HIGHWAYS serving Ten Mile residents are undergoing surface treatments that should be completed by mid-July. In late June, County 50 and 71 were coated with calcium chloride to stabilize the surface and to reduce dust. Shingobee 49 and 51 (the latter now designated as Hiram Loop Road NW) received a layer of gravel, followed by the calcium chloride application. A portion of County 71 remains closed due to high water across the road at two spots. Motorists are being routed on Hiram Loop Road NW to bypass that stretch of highway. Also scheduled for calcium chloride application is Boone Point Road. Meanwhile, an experimental treatment that combines a bituminous mix with fine sand and clay will be tried on Hiram Roads 1 and 2. It's a process that is used in Finland, Sweden and other European countries and is reported to result in a firm, long-lasting surface at relatively low cost.

ADOPT-A-HIGHWAY PROGRAM NEEDS VOLUNTEERS

by Dave Losby

For over ten years TMLA has sponsored the Adopt-A-Highway program, picking up litter along the roadside for 6.5 miles of Highway 6 from 371 to 71 and 2 miles of Highway 50 from 371 to 71. Volunteers assist in half-mile stretches of these roads. While the program calls for pick-ups three times a year (Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day), several volunteers pick up litter routinely as they walk the roads.

We need volunteers to assist in this program for the following stretches of Lower Ten Mile Lake Road (Highway 6):

If you are willing to devote three hours a year to this TMLA project, please call Dave Losby at 675-6066. You will also have an opportunity to sign up at the Annual Meeting.

This year the following TMLA members are participating in the Lower Ten Mile Highway 6 portion of the program: John McManus, Molly Bliska, Judy Bryngelson, Sandy Birkholz, Hillaway Association, Don Willis, Ken Regner, Rod Owre, and Dave Losby. Don Patterson, Larry Urbanski, and Bob Nelson are participating in the Upper Ten Mile portion. We thank all these participants and hope to add more names to this list.