Hessel Marina - July 26, 2010

Les Cheneaux Watershed Council

Map Brochure - July 2010

Hazardous Waste Collection Day - THIS WEEKEND!

It's time to clean out those old chemical containers from your garages, basements, and under your sinks.  This year's Hazardous Waste Collection Day is this Saturday, July 24th.  The annual event will be held at the Clark Township office parking lot on Blindline Road from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  Click here to view the types of materials you can bring.

Dredging Project

This tug is anchored at a staging area off Big LaSalle Island in preparation to dredge the Les Cheneaux navigation channels for the first time in forty years. The Army Corps of Engineers will dredge areas in the channels that have experienced silt accumulation over the years.

Your Watershed Council is sensitive to ecosystem and water quality issues and understands that minor, non-habitat threatening, temporary silting will occur in some areas around the dredge operation. The Council also understands that our tourist-based economy is critical to the entire community.

Les Cheneaux first became popular with tourists who arrived by steamships through our channels. We wish to balance water-based activities and tourism in an ecologically-responsible way so that our Les Cheneaux way of life can continue as it has for the past one hundred-fifty years.

Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS)

VHS is a severe disease of freshwater and marine fish recently found in the Great Lakes.  It can be spread by infected fish,  contaminated water sources or contaminated objects.  Ensure the virus does not spread to additional locations by taking these steps:

• Thoroughly clean and dry your boat or trailer before using again
• Empty all water from equipment before transporting
• Remove all mud, plants, and aquatic life from equipment
• Do not move fish or plants from one body to another

Stop your boat from spreading fish disease.  Be responsible.  Clean it out.  Wash it down.

Our Watershed

Protecting this area are the Les Cheneaux Watershed Council and the Chippewa/East Mackinac Conservation District. These two non-profit organizations have teamed up through the Les Cheneaux Watershed Project to restore threatened water quality, create awareness of how to protect it, and put in motion a plan to guarantee the nature-based livelihood of the community and its visitors.

The Les Cheneaux Watershed Project is the community's effort to protect area water quality through education, best management practices, and long term land use planning.  The project has been funded in part through the Michigan Non-point Source Program by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement 2006-0109 to the Chippewa/East Mackinac Conservation District.  The project began in February 2007. 

Aquatic Weevil Report  

The Watershed Council has two on-going projects in Cedarville Bay to address the continuing threat of the invasive Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum).  The projects are weed harvesting and the use of weevils.  In the spring of 2007, aquatic weevils (Euhrychiopsis lecontei) were planted in the Bay as a biological control agent against the milfoil.  Since the introduction of the weevil, the Council has been monitoring the density of the milfoil and condition of the test areas.  In January 2010, the Council released a study of the success of the weevil project.  Click here to review the study.

Phragmites in the Les Chenueax Area

Phragmites australis has invaded Les Cheneaux. The invasive phragmites (frag-MY-teez), also known as common reed, is a perennial, wetland grass that can grow to a height of 16 feet.  P. australis is native to Michigan but an invasive cultural variant is becoming widespread and is threatening the ecological health of wetlands and coastal shorelines of the Great Lakes.  The native, invasive and hybrid forms of these have been sighted in our area during the past two seasons. 

Phragmites is controllable.  For those wishing to learn more,  log on to www.michigan.gov/deq.  Enter “phragmites” in the search box in the upper right corner of the home page.

McKay Creek

Les Cheneaux Community Schools  - The Watershed Project is pleased to inform you that we are including Les Cheneaux Community School project activities on our web site that relate to improving our watershed.  Check out our "Projects" page to see some of the fine work accomplished by our students.

Water Tests - 2008

Thanks to a grant from the Les Cheneaux Community Foundation, the Watershed Project performed water tests at ten locations throughout the watershed during the summer of 2008.  The purpose of the tests was to monitor coliform and E.coli bacteria levels near concentrations of shoreline cottages and areas designated for swimming.  Click here to see the test results.