{"id":314,"date":"2020-06-18T16:04:10","date_gmt":"2020-06-18T20:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gull-and-silver-lakes.ca\/gslra\/?p=314"},"modified":"2023-02-19T18:53:49","modified_gmt":"2023-02-19T23:53:49","slug":"are-you-a-good-lake-steward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/2020\/06\/are-you-a-good-lake-steward\/","title":{"rendered":"Are you a good lake steward?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Perhaps with less gathering time planned, this is a prime opportunity to take stock of our stewardship. Are we really doing all we can to preserve our Muskoka Experience?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Here is a checklist to review. How do you rate as a steward of our precious earth and lakes?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><u>Realize that nitrogen and phosphorus (nutrient<\/u><\/strong><strong><u> pollution) come from person-made sources like:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>F<\/strong>ertilizer runoff\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6. DON\u00e2\u20ac&#x2122;T use chemical fertilizers<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>S<\/strong>ewage runoff from septic tanks\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6. GET them checked and pumped regularly<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>G<\/strong>rass clippings\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6. DON\u00e2\u20ac&#x2122;T let them rot in a pile<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Animal waste\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 PICK UP animal scat, including pets and geese<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>F<\/strong>ossil fuels\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 ENSURE proper engine maintenance and PURCHASE 4-stroke rather than 2-stroke engines \u00e2\u20ac\u201d it all helps!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>S<\/strong>oap and detergent wastes\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6.USE phosphate-free and environmentally friendly\/biodegradable products \u00e2\u20ac\u201d AND NOT near the lake!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>C<\/strong>ontaminants \u00e2\u20ac\u201d SEE proper disposal guidelines on the District of Muskoka website (contaminants put down storm drains can enter waterways)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><u>Realize that t<\/u><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><u>hrough responsible property design and maintenance,<\/u> we can reduce runoff: <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>MAINTAIN or re-establish\u00c2&nbsp; a shoreline buffer, using plants native to our area. Riparian (shore vegetation) buffers reduce the runoff of sediments and pollution.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>MINIMIZE foot traffic near your shoreline.\u00c2&nbsp; It reduces soil oxygen and encourages water runoff.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>KEEP natural areas as large as possible.\u00c2&nbsp; Avoid fragmentation.\u00c2&nbsp; Encourage wildlife corridors.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>MAINTAIN natural forest floor coverings including brush and logs (&amp; encourage wildlife).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>USE Rain Barrels to collect water for gardens and reduce runoff.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>HAVE Rain Gardens to collect roof runoff and grow plants while directing water to the soil.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>CHOOSE permeable materials like mulch or chips or gravel to allow water infiltration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>USE vegetated shallow swales to slow runoff and filter it.\u00c2&nbsp; Berms re-direct it for infiltration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>During construction, MINIMIZE exposed soil and use straw bales or silt fencing to filter runoff<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Perhaps with less gathering time planned, this is a prime opportunity to take stock of our stewardship. Are we really doing all we can to preserve our Muskoka Experience? Here is a checklist to review. How do you rate as a steward of our precious earth and lakes? Realize that nitrogen and phosphorus (nutrient pollution) &hellip; <a class=\"read-excerpt\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/2020\/06\/are-you-a-good-lake-steward\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&raquo;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-enviro"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gullsilverlakes.ca\/gslra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}