Watershed Planning

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The Conservancy has partnered with Lake Associations and other organizations to help write watershed protection plans for the major watersheds in Leelanau County. These plans are a guide for watershed residents to help maintain and improve the health of their watershed. They are written to meet both the state (Department of Environmental Quality or DEQ) and Federal (Environmental Protection Agency) criteria in order to be eligible for various grants and funding resources related to water quality and watershed protection.

Map of the major watersheds in Leelanau County

Both the Glen Lake Watershed, the Lake Leelanau Watershed and the West Grand Traverse Bay Watershed have approved watershed plans. The Conservancy has been a successful partner with these plans by protecting important upland recharge areas, wetlands and lake/stream frontage using Clean Michigan Initiative (CMI) funding.  These watershed plans outline best management practices to help maintain watershed health and have been used as a guide for lake associations and residents. The Glen Lake Association has been successful in obtaining CMI funds for their water quality monitoring program.

Click here to download a chart summarizing land protection efforts to date by the Leelanau Conservancy by watershed.  We have worked with both private landowners on private conservation easement project s, purchase land that is open to the public as well as what we refer to as transfer and assist projects. This is where we have partnered with another organization on the project but do not own or hold a conservation easement on the property.

Links to approved Watershed Plans in Leelanau County

The conservancy is in the process of partnering with both the Lime Lake and Little Traverse Lake Associations along with Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and the Leelanau Conservation District to write the Good Harbor Bay Watershed Protection Plan. Planning started in Summer 2011 and the plan is expected to be done within 2 years.  This is the last major watershed in Leelanau County to be developing an approved watershed plan. Below is a link to a map of the watershed:

Good Harbor Bay Watershed Boundary Map

Good Harbor Bay Watershed SURVEY

Please fill out the survey below if you use the Good Harbor Bay Watershed or are a resident of the watershed. You can also call or email Yarrow Wolfe at the Conservancy office for a hard copy. Thank you in advance for participating!

 http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6TLBDX2
 
 
 

If you would like to learn more or to be a part of this watershed planning process, please contact Yarrow Wolfe at the Conservancy. Or Molly O’Toole with the Lime Lake Association or Bill Irwin, Little Traverse Lake Association.