SILVER LAKE - Silver Lake recently was notified by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources that it was selected to receive LARE grants for lake improvement projects.
The lake association's president, Jim Walker, said the DNR has approved a grant of $15,705 for aquatic management plan and treatment of non-native weed species for 2007.
"We feel very fortunate to once again receive funding through the DNR," Walker said. "Competition for LARE grants has grown the last few years and funding has not kept up with demand, requiring the DNR to be much more selective in their choices of the grants awarded."
In the past few years, through the efforts of the Silver Lake Conservation Association's membership, not only has the lake continued to obtain government grants for weed control, but also has received nearly $100,000 in watershed improvement funding, which covers roughly 3,200 acres.
Also, the lake association recently received a land gift of 8.3 acres for conservation purposes. The acreage is very important to the continued success of future improvements to Silver Lake. The Morrett Ditch runs directly through the property and enters the lake's main inlet channel.
"By managing this property and installing conservation measures, sedimentation and nutrient overloading can be greatly reduced," Walker said. "We want everyone to know that Silver Lake is now one of the best fishing lakes in the state."
The association also is working towards a grant for sediment removal in several lake locations in the near future.
If anyone is interested in joining the association, they can to attend one of the meetings, held on the third Saturday of each month, April through October. Meetings are held at the Lion's Club Building on Harrison Street, in Silver Lake and start promptly at 9:30 a.m.
April 21 will be the first meeting for this summer and Aquatic Weed Control will be the guest speaker.
Nominations for this year's officers also will be taken with elections to be held during the May 19 meeting.
For more information, contact Jim Walker at 260-352-0806 or go the association's Web site at www.silverlakeconservation.com
