LLPOA Lake Management Committee Update: August 10, 2026

LLPOA LAKE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE UPDATE

August 10, 2026

inform & educate residents; develop sustainable lake management solutions

1. Weed harvesting fragments – An article was sent to me regarding the potential side effects from weed harvesting where the fragments from the cutting can actually spread weeds in a pond or lake. Yes, this can and does happen. I reached out to our weed harvester and they responded that fragments do occur when cutting. They limit the fragments in our lake by replacing their cutting blades every year and keeping them sharp during the cutting season. They also keep their speed down when cutting, 1 to 2 miles per hour, to minimize the fragments. In talking with other lakes, the benefits of weed harvesting far outweigh the risk of fragmentation.
2. Lake County Health Department (LCHD) water testing – I reviewed the current LCHD water testing process. LCHD comes out every 2 weeks to test our lake water at North Beach and South Beach. They only test for e.coli, nothing else. If the results are 235 CFU/100 ml sample or greater they recommend closing the beach for swimming (red flag). They then come out every day and test until the level returns to under 235. From 7/13 thru 7/15 we had readings above 235 and closed the beach for swimming (red flag). The 7/16 sample was well below the 235 limit at 155. We had one more spike in e.coli after a large rainfall (2+ inches) on 7/27 with a reading of 2,419. The next day, 7/28, the reading dropped to 78, one of our lowest of the season. Why the large discrepancy? My guess lies with the sample taken on 7/27 not being representative of the swim area.
3. Minimize grass clippings and leaves going into the lake – A few lakefront residents are piling grass clippings and leaves along their shoreline. This is a very bad habit and will negatively affect our lake water quality. One bushel of grass clippings contains enough nutrients to fuel 50 pounds of algae growth. The decaying material from the clippings and leaves uses up dissolved oxygen in the lake which can then harm the fish population. It also leads to muck accumulation at the bottom of the lake making our lake shallower. The
   lake management committee strongly advises against piling grass clippings and leaves along the shoreline.
4. Any fertilizer, especially excess fertilizer, applied to any lawn in Loch Lomond including those not on the lake, has the potential to run off into our lake. This will fuel algae and weed growth. Please use fertilizer sparingly if at all on your lawn.
5. Review of lake management plan results so far this summer.
   1. Early spring spray to eradicate the invasive curly leaf pondweed was successful as we eradicated almost 100% of the invasive plant. Unfortunately, this plant will return each year from seed pods in the lake bottom from previous years plants.
   2. 197 trailer loads of weeds have been removed from our lake so far this year. We are on track to remove an estimate nearing 400 loads this year. This compares to a total of 288 loads last year and 164 total loads in 2024. The addition of the boat launch at North Beach and the increase in number of days harvesting this year has led to the corresponding increases in weed removal.
   3. We did another round of biodredge this year and are expecting to see similar results as previous years of a 1 inch to 6 inch reduction of silt on the bottom of the lake in areas treated with biodredge material.
   4. Our geese deterrent efforts continue to yield excellent results. We had 1 family of 7 (then 5) geese after the spring nesting season. When the goslings were old enough to fly they left our lake. So, for the second year in a row we have ZERO geese making a home on our lake throughout the summer.
   5. We continue to collect data on our water quality including secchi readings and dissolved oxygen readings. We will evaluate this data in the fall to adjust our lake management plan. Initial results are encouraging.
   6. Floating islands – 2 of 4 floating islands were moved to different locations in the lake. All 4 are doing much better this summer as the plants on them are thriving. We still have some gaps to fill but the fact the muskrats have stopped eating the plants we have means we have identified plants they don’t find to their liking.
   7. Educate and engage residents – We continue to do this through our monthly meetings, emails and social media.
   8. Water circulation – A second circulator was installed at South Beach and we will be adding a circulator at North Beach soon. Increasing water circulation helps deter excessive weed and algae growth which will also reduce algal blooms and harmful algal blooms. The committee continues to encourage lakefront homeowners to consider adding some type of water circulation device to their shoreline.
   9. Carp reduction – We continue to work with LCHD to remove invasive carp from our lake. We removed 94 carp in 2024, 50 carp in 2025 and 25 so far this year with another removal effort planned for the fall.
   10. Increase native plant population and coverage in our lake – Based upon LCHD plant coverage mapping of our lake we have increased plant coverage in our lake the last 2 years. With LCHD doing a full lake study on our lake this year we are anxious to see the results of the study for plant coverage, plant variety as well as many other data points we can use to adjust our lake management plan.
   11. We continue to share information with other lakes in our area via organized groups such as Lake County Lake Lovers, Des Plaines River Watershed Group and other informal lake groups.
   12. We are continuing our efforts to work with the village of Mundelein on controlling the stormwater runoff into our lake. They have been very receptive to working with us.
6. Gerry reviewed the data analysis he put together for the group and explained how he utilized AI for the analysis. Overall, the results paint a slightly better picture of our lake than we thought. We will look to do this analysis again with a full season of data in the fall. Gerry is one of the lead people for the Lake County Lake Lovers Tech Team where 21 local lakes share testing equipment. Gerry also shared information from the test results of those lakes.
7. Tom reviewed the lake management budget expenses to date as compared to our budget. We are on track to be under budget for the year. The group then discussed the results so far this year as well as other ideas and estimated expenses for 2027. The consensus of the group was to continue the 1-time whole lake spray for invasive curly leaf ($16K), weed harvesting at the same rate ($80K), biodredge at the same rate ($10K), no additional circulators next year, no fish stocking next year as this occurs roughly every 3
   years. The consensus of the group was that $20K be set aside to start a dredging fund and to plan for future dredging projects. These proposed lake management budget requests will be presented at the board budget planning meeting later this month. If you feel strongly about these recommendations then I encourage you to attend the board meeting next Tuesday, August 18, 7:00 PM at the Mundelein Fire Station and voice your support to the whole board.