Lake Lanier Association 2009 Annual Meeting

Over 225 members attended the Lake Lanier Association’s annual membership meeting on May 5 at the Lakeview Center in Dawsonville. After updates on the association’s activities and programs for the previous year, members of the board reported to the membership on current initiatives.  Val Perry, Executive Vice President, gave the treasurer’s report and also conducted the business meeting.  He additionally provided an overview of the 2008 Golf Tournament and the Adopt A Lake program, and Vicki Barnhorst, Executive Director, reported on all Shore Sweep programs.

The board recognized the following members for their contributions to the association:

• Individual volunteer of the year:  Captain Rick Marton and his crew, Bonny Putney and Dick Boyd, for their tireless efforts in removing Styrofoam and large debris from the lake using the trash barge.
• Corporate volunteer of the year:  Tom Child, Marine Specialties, for his donation of four trash barges each with four staff members to aid volunteer boaters with large trash and for the removal of abandoned boats during the 20th Annual Shore Sweep.
• Special acknowledgement:  Tommy Bagwell, American Proteins, for his monthly testing of Adopt A Lake water samples at his laboratories and for his generous support of Shore Sweep and the Lake Lanier Association’s golf tournaments.

Special reports included a 2009 legislative overview provided by Senator Jack Murphy, Forsyth County, and Senator Lee Hawkins from Hall County.  Wilton Rook, Vice President , Technology, reported on his participation in stakeholder groups and his presentation at the National Academy of Science ACF workshop.  Clyde Morris, the association’s attorney, reported on the association’s intervention in six of the Tri-States cases being heard this year in a Jacksonville federal court.

The guest speaker was Pete Taylor, formerly head of the Mobile District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  Mr. Taylor is now the chief of staff for the Mobile District and is overseeing the revision of the Water Control Manual (WCM).  He indicated that the update of the manual, which was last updated in the late 1950’s, is a four year process.

He explained that the process started last year with public scoping meetings throughout the basin.  The public input has been compiled and ranks stakeholder concerns with water management, and economic impact and recreation of the most concern to stakeholders.  The Corps will next do modeling based on the system and incorporate drought contingency plans.  Additional  public comment meetings will take place in June 2011 with completion of the manual in February 2012. Mr. Taylor did indicate during his presentation that the Corps will not be considering raising Lake Lanier’s full pool to 1073 during this WCM update.