LakeSmart April E-news

April LakeSmart News

Hello Susan,

Preparation has begun for the 2025 LakeSmart season! It's time to get trained and gather materials. Read below for more.

Virtual Training Dates for New Evaluators
"20 Years of LakeSmart" Webinar on April 10th
Get Your Outreach Materials for 2025
Order Business Cards & Association Stickers
Having Trouble Finding Erosion Control Mix? Here's a List of Resources
Register for the Maine Lakes/Lake Stewards of Maine Joint Conference

All the Best,

Caroline

cseibert@lakes.me

Virtual Training Dates for New Evaluators

Interested in becoming a volunteer LakeSmart evaluator? We've set the dates for two required virtual trainings! These courses are also open to experienced evaluators looking to refresh their program knowledge. Both trainings will be recorded and uploaded to our website following the live presentations.

We will be hosting one session of "New Evaluator Basics: Lake Science Introduction, How LakeSmart Works, and an Overview of the LakeSmart Property Evaluation" on Thursday May 8th at 5pm.

The second part of virtual training is "Installing and Using Survey123" with Becky Schaffner, GIS Coordinator, Maine DEP. There will be one session of this training on Thursday May 22nd at 5pm.

Once both virtual trainings have been completed, the next step is to attend an on-site training at your lake or one nearby. Once your lake requests a training, Andrea, Caroline or a LakeSmart Hub Coordinator will travel to you and walk through two complete evaluations with your group. Contact Andrea (astevens@lakes.me) to schedule an on-site training.

"20 Years of LakeSmart" Webinar Next Week

As part of the winter webinar series hosted by Maine Lakes and Lake Stewards of Maine, Caroline Seibert will be presenting "20 Years of LakeSmart" on April 10th at 6pm.

Caroline's talk will delve into 20+ years of evaluation data, assessing the effectiveness of the social science principles on which LakeSmart was developed and looking at trends of homeowner program participation. This talk is an updated version of one presented at the 2024 Maine Water and Sustainability Conference, co-authored by Caroline Seibert and Kathy Hoppe.

Get Your Outreach Materials for 2025

If your LakeSmart team needs award signs, 2025 stickers or LoonSmart stickers reach out to Caroline if you are in Piscataquis, Hancock, Penobscot, Washington, or Aroostook County. Email Andrea if your team is located anywhere else!

If you need Maine Lakes outreach materials (brochures and pamphlets) such as Common Shrubs of the Maine Shoreline, LakeSmart Laker's Dozen, Lakeside Living: Caring for Your Septic System, or Protect Your Pond, please email Leah (lgauthier@lakes.me) to request what you need.

Order Your Custom Evaluator Business Cards and Lake Association Stickers Now!

We are once again offering 40 custom business cards to our volunteer evaluators and HUB coordinators for free. Email Caroline (cseibert@lakes.me) with your name, lake affiliation, and email or phone number so she can get those ordered for you before the LakeSmart season begins!

Maine Lakes will also be taking requests for custom lake association stickers to place in the bottom corner of your LakeSmart award signs. Email Caroline a .png or .jpeg of your lake association logo, as well as an association-specific email address, and she will create a sticker design. From there, we will order and ship you the stickers for free!

Having Trouble Finding Erosion Control Mix in Your Area?

We often recommend Erosion Control Mix (ECM) to homeowners in our LakeSmart follow-up reports. ECM is made of partially composted bark, wood fragments, sand, gravel, and stone and is heavier than most mulches. It can be used to protect soil from erosion, retain moisture, control weeds, and improve soil as it decomposes.

We acknowledge that sometimes erosion control materials can be difficult to track down! Feel free to use this list, provided by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, so that you can find a local supplier of erosion control materials.

Registration is Open for the 2025 Maine Lakes & Lake Stewards of Maine Conference

Join us at the University of Maine at Farmington on June 13 for "Lakes at the Edge".

This year's conference features multiple speakers highlighting different features of lake edge habitat and how they affect water quality. No matter how you interpret “lakes at the edge”, you are sure to find something at the 2025 lakes conference to pique your interest.

LakeSmart is a volunteer-driven, community-based program that educates homeowners about how to manage their lakefront properties in ways that protect water quality.

For more information and to subscribe to this e-newsletter, visit us at our website.

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