Michigan Lake & Stream Association

Who are they? A non-profit organization, organized in 1961, made up of individuals and associations who desire to conserve and improve Michigan's lakes and streams and to protect and promote wise use of Michigan's water resources.They encourage and support all efforts of riparian property owners, lake and stream associations, legislative bodies and agencies of local and state government to maintain "swimable" and "fishable" water and to prevent the contamination of groundwater aquifers and supplies.

Lake Shores Association officers first attended a ML&SA conference in Lansing about 1985 and became aware of the need to learn more about our lakes water quality, weed control, chemical use and misuse and fish populations. LSA has been represented at all the conferences and workshops since then, allowing you to benefit from what was learned.

Primarily, MLSA has an educational focus and your representatives sure did learn! What you ask? Well, first they learned that lake management is very complicated and gets more so as the population around the lake increases. Secondly they learned that feeding ducks or geese at the shoreline creates a better chance of children getting swimmers itch. They also learned that the fertilizers we use on our lawn contribute to excessive plant growth in the lake (and all we wanted was nice green grass). Your representatives also met and became acquainted with professionals and educators who were willing to share their knowledge. They learned from the mistakes made by other groups by networking with the others.

Lake Shores Association has volunteers whom have monitored our water clarity using the Secchi Disk for quite a few years. The current volunteer is Gordy Potter. Ron Lewis, who has moved to Florida, did it for a number of years. The information obtained goes through ML&SA to the MDEQ (Michigan Department of Environmental Quality) where the records are kept.

So, is membership in the ML&SA worth while? Absolutely!! You can also become an individual member and receive information directly from them for a nominal fee of $25 per year.

You can visit these web pages for information about programs and pamphlets that are available: