President’s Report Summer 2018
by Mike Thomas, PLCA President
Welcome back to the cottage and Paudash Lake!
Meetings, Meeting, Meetings
Your PLCA Board has been busy this season attending meetings, having meetings and planning future meetings. With the closure of Lakehouse restaurant our meeting location for the July 1st Boat Parade Party and the Annual General Meeting (AGM) has changed. See the back cover of this newsletter for event details.
Following is some commentary on a number of issues, items and events past and coming up.
Bill Davis
This past winter Bill passed away at the age of 93. He is one of the founders of the Paudash Lake Conservation Association. Bill is survived by his wife, Shirley and children, Sharon, Gary and Lynn (who is currently on the PLCA Board) and granddaughters Angela, Michelle and Jeanne.
Thank you Bill for your pioneering efforts at Paudash Lake.
Summer 2018 Events
Canada Day Boat Parade and BBQ – Sunday, July 1st, 2 p.m.
Don Thomas Memorial Rock Bass Derby – Saturday, July 7th, 9 a.m. to Noon—Paudash Lake Marina
PLCA AGM – Sunday, July 22nd, 10 a.m.
Annual Regatta & Fun Day – Saturday, August 4th, 12 noon
Further details will be communicated to members as we get closer to each event. See the back cover of this newsletter for event info.
‘Love Your Lake’ Program
Those of you on Lower Paudash would have received your ‘LYL’ shoreline property report by now. We have now completed all of Paudash Lake – 64 km of shoreline and 724 properties. The goal (based upon scientific research by Watersheds Canada) is to have at least 75% of a lake’s shoreline ‘natural’ or ‘regenerative’ in order to maintain healthy water quality. Unhealthy water means poor fishing, threat of algae, reduction in animal habitat and lessening of real estate values.
Upper Paudash was at the 75% level and Lower Paudash at 71%. Of the 72 lakes that were surveyed in this study only 5 were at 75% or higher. The average was a low 46% of their shoreline being natural or regenerative.
Although Paudash was one of the better shoreline lakes we still need to do work to improve and maintain our shorelines at a higher than 75% level.
The next steps are for those property owners identified with ‘ornamental’ or ‘degraded’ shorelines to regenerate them. In order to help you in this regard the Coalition of Haliburton Property Owners Association (CHA), of which PLCA is a member, has created a public web portal on their website, www.cohpoa.org, which helps you decide which type of native plants and trees to use and where to obtain them.
Please contact us at PLCA ( info@paudashlake.org ) if you are planning to improve your shoreline and we may have some financial support available to you as well.
Paudash Lakewood Estates (Inlet Bay)
Currently this project appears to be ‘on hold’. No permits have been applied for with either Highlands East or the Crowe Valley Conservation Association.
Lake Trout
Our 5 year stocking program with the North Hastings Community Fish Hatchery has just concluded in May. Nearly 20,000 lake trout weighing approximately 200 grams and 6” – 8” long were put into North Bay and Joe Bay over this period. It is now very important for fishers to obey the slot size release law from 40 – 55 cm., one line through the ice only and a ‘keep’ limit of 2 (sports license) and 1 (conservation license) per day.
Other Items
This fall is our municipal elections and PLCA will review the various candidates and their positions after the nomination date has passed.
FOCA and Highlands East are looking closely at the increasing number of cottage owner rentals occurring and the various challenges that arise from this. This includes not only neighbor concerns but also by-law infractions that can result.
PLCA will be participating with the Birds Canada Loon Lakes report again in 2018, so please contact me at info@paudashlake.org if you see any loon chicks from June onwards.
Golf Day, Sunday, August 19th
Some members have arranged for a ‘friendly’ golf tourney between Upper and Lower Paudash at Bancroft Ridge Golf Club. This will be a ‘fun day’ and for further information contact jamesmikehale@hotmail.com
North Hastings Community Fish Hatchery
On Saturday, July 14th at the Bancroft Curling Club their annual fund-raising dinner and auction (live and silent) will be held. This is a fun and important event and Paudash has certainly benefited from the work these volunteers do. For information and tickets (to be a part of a PLCA table) contact me at info@paudashlake.org.
Zebra Mussel Education ‘Blitz’
PLCA, in conjunction with the Bancroft Area Stewardship Council, is participating in this education project on June 23rd and 24th – opening weekend of bass fishing. We need volunteers to ‘man’ or ‘woman’ the boat access points on the lake (marinas, public launch sites) and hand out education material. This would be a morning time commitment. Contact us at info@paudashlake.org to volunteer.
Earth Day, April 28th
A few PLCA volunteers participated and cleaned up the North Bay beach area. Thank you to those that helped.
North Bay Beach Demonstration Site
Last fall the north side of the beach was planted with native shrubs and trees to regenerate this area. It is the ‘grassed’ section and although people use the shoreline area please take care around the newly planted items. There is shore erosion occurring here and the idea is to regenerate the land so that further deterioration can be reduced.
FOCA AGM (March 3, 2018)
Al McKellar and myself attended this very informative AGM (PLCA is a member) where there were sessions on cottage country first aid, renting responsibly and road issues. The first aid presenters will be attending our own AGM in July.
Rick Esselment of the Ontario Onsite Wastewater Association gave a very educational session about ‘septic health’. This is very timely as Highlands East has begun (in 2017) the ‘septic re-inspection and compliance program’ and Paudash Lake will be on their agenda in the next couple of years.
For all the details on the FOCA meeting go to www.foca.on.ca
CHA Lake Stewards Meeting, May 5, 2018
I attended this and this is where the updated ‘Love Your Lake’ information was provided as well as the Healthy Lakes Contest which is discussed elsewhere in this newsletter.
Calcium Decline in Our Lakes, May 26, 2018
Another education session by CHA, which I attended, to hear Dr. Norman Yan present the findings of the 35 year study in Muskoka Lakes and Haliburton Lakes. Have you noticed a decline in cray fish and clams? This may be in part due to the calcium decline in our waters and lakeside properties.
Dr. Yan said one way to increase the calcium is by spreading firewood ash on the properties which will slowly leach calcium back into the soil and by run-off into the waters. His full discussion can be found on the CHA website.
Please contact me at any time with regards to any issues that affects the interests of PLCA and our members. Also please encourage your neighbors to join if they are not members. There is strength in association and at about only one-third of Paudash Lake property owners as members we have room and need to grow.