4344 GEORGE BOULEVARD, SEBRING, FL

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1 To: CC: Lake Istokpoga Management Committee members and alternates: Gary Albin, Bill Dwinell, Paul Gray, Rick Ingler, Flint Johns, Gary Lamperelli, Paul Phypers Jr., Jeanette Porter, Dick Reaney, Jim Reed, John Ruggerio Agency liaison representatives: Commissioner Elwell, Vicki Pontius, Chris Mayhew (Highlands County), Beacham Furse, Steve Gornak, Bill Pouder, Kelle Sullivan (FFWCC), Gary Ritter (SFWMD), Heidi Hoffman, (FDEP), Sandra Sneckenberger (USFWS), Erin Duffy (USACE) list: Joe DeCerbo, David Douglas, Ron Durham, Pam Fentress (HSWCD), June Fisher, Bert Galloway, Don Hatcher, Linda McCarthy, Marty Mielke, Gloria Rybinski, Audrey Vickers, Susie Bishop, Highlands County Commissioners, media outlets Date: Tuesday, May 28, 2013 From: Clell Ford, County Lakes Manager Subject: Agenda for Lake Istokpoga Management Committee May 2013 meeting Thursday, May 30, 9 am, Conference room 2 of the Bert J. Harris Agricultural Center The May 2013 meeting of the Lake Istokpoga Management Committee will be held on Thursday, May 30, starting at 9 am in Conference Room 2 of the Bert J. Harris Agricultural Center. This meeting is the opportunity for the LIMC to provide comment on FWC s habitat management activities, as reported at their May 21 st public meeting. The date for this meeting was set to follow the public meeting for this purpose. Additionally, staff will present updates on the Lake Istokpoga Management Plan and the By-laws as well as approval of previous meeting minutes, review of action items and regular agency updates and reports on activities for the lake, as well as other issues of interest and concern to the Committee.

2 Lake Istokpoga Management Committee Meeting 9 am, Conference Room 2, Bert J. Harris Agricultural Center Thursday, May 30 th, 2013 PRELIMINARY AGENDA Sign-in / Call to order / Meeting certification / Meeting civility announcement 1) Introductions 2) Meeting Minutes a) Review and Approval for March 21, 2012 meeting ( ed, handout) 3) Review of Outstanding Action Items ( ed, handout) 4) Committee membership (membership on the back of meeting agenda) 5) By-Laws update 6) Istokpoga Watershed Management Master Plan update 7) Water quality / project updates a) Hydrologic conditions b) Water Quality update Marsh Monitoring c) Habitat management - Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission public meeting summary and feedback d) Aquatic Plant Management Activities e) Spoil Island removal f) Lake Okeechobee Watershed Northern Everglades and Estuaries Restoration Projects g) Spring Lake Improvement District activities and projects h) Istokpoga Marsh Watershed Improvement District activities and projects i) Other agency updates 8) Items from Committee members 9) Public comment Members of the public wishing to discuss items not on the agenda are requested to limit their comments to 3 minutes 10) Announcements: LIMC information is now available on-line: Meeting schedule for 2013: Summer Meeting to follow FWC summer public aquatic plant management workshop Fall Meeting December 5,

3 Istokpoga Management Committee Members and affiliations as of December 18, 2012 Primary or Affiliation Alternate Name Voting Committee members Angler-Hunter Community Primary Vacant Environmental Community Primary Paul Gray Lake Placid Community Primary Jim Reed Friends of Istokpoga Primary Bill Dwinell Alternate Gary Lamperelli Lorida Community Primary Vacant Alternate Jeanette Porter Highlands County Lakes Association Primary Dick Reaney Alternate John Ruggerio Highlands County Homeowners Association Primary Rick Ingler Fish Camp Owners Primary Gary Albin Range Agriculture Primary Flint Johns Istokpoga Marsh Watershed Improvement District Primary Paul Phypers, Jr. Non-voting (liaison) agency representatives*: Highlands County Board of County Commissioners Liaison Don Elwell Highlands County Parks and Natural Resources Co-Chair Clell Ford Highlands County Parks and Natural Resources Staff* Mike McMillian Highlands County Aquatic Weed Control Program Staff Chris Mayhew Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Co-Chair Bill Pouder FFWCC Staff* Steven Gornak FFWCC Bureau of Invasive Plant Management Staff* Kelle Sullivan Florida Department of Environmental Protection Division of submerged lands Staff* Heidi Hoffman South Florida Water Management District Staff* Gary Ritter US Army Corps of Engineers Staff* Erin Duffy US Fish and Wildlife Service Staff* Sandra Sneckenberger *Agency liaison staff attending may vary depending on availability

4 Lake Istokpoga Management Committee Thursday, May 30, 2013 Minutes 1) Call to Order (9:02) and Introductions Committee Members Present: Lake Placid Community Jim Reed Friends of Istokpoga Bill Dwinell Highlands County Lakes Association Dick Reaney Istokpoga Marsh Watershed Improvement District Paul Phypers, Jr Fish Camp Owners Gary Albin Staff Present: FFWCC Steve Gornak, Bill Pouder, Beacham Furse SFWMD Gary Ritter Highlands County Clell Ford, Mike McMillian Commissioner Don Elwell Visitors: Bert Galloway, Vickie Albritton, Robert Albritton, Clay Shrum, Susie Bishop 2) Meeting Minutes - Reviewed and approved the LIMC meeting minutes from December 20, The motion was made by Bill Dwinell and seconded by Paul Phypers. The vote was unanimous. 3) Reviewed Outstanding Action Items Water Level Fluctuation Plan No new information. Gary Ritter suggested to Clell that Commissioner Jack Richey may want to go to the next 9 County Coalition meeting and ask the Colonel if the Army Corp would make a presentation to the 9 County Coalition and maybe the BCC as well about how the current water level schedule was arrived at and if there may be any changes to that schedule in the future. There was some discussion about the importance of lake level variability. Mr. Dwinell requested that if any changes were made to the regulation schedule that boater access be provided during times of very low water. Mr. Furse and Ford stated that there would be much study before any changes to the regulation could be made and that it would cost hundreds of millions of dollars for the water storage required. You may lower the lake level in Istokpoga but that water needs to be stored somewhere for downstream water users. The inlake dredging cost would be minimal compared to the cost of purchasing enough land or working out deals for water storage. Mr. Reed stated that lake users need to be educated as to the importance of fluctuating water levels for the health of the lake and that in some years they may not be able to move freely around the lake because of low water level. He also pointed out that Lake Istokpoga is one of the best bass fishing lakes in the U.S. because of the drawdown and subsequent work (i.e. there is evidence that theses management decisions help create a long term good fishery. Page 1 of 5

5 Current status of TMDL s No new information. There is a DEP meeting on June 11 which will discuss the implementation of nutrient rules for the Okeechobee watershed. Make changes to By-Laws Staff still working with county attorney. Advertise for all vacant positions We are waiting for additional comments or approval from the county attorney before the By-laws can be presented to the BCC. Review LDR changes No new information. ACTION ITEM 1- Mr. Dwinell mentioned that he had requested information on incoming and outgoing phosphorus levels for the lake. There was a meeting in 2002 in which it was stated that the lake would be saturated within 10 years and there have been no updates since that time. Mr. Ford said he would have that information at the next meeting. ACTION ITEM 2 Mr. Reed mentioned that a couple of meetings back there was talk of creating a prioritized list of improvements or changes the committee would like to see to the lake as advice to the BCC. This concept is mentioned in the management plan. Mr. Reed mentioned three that he would like to include on that list; more parking at Istokpoga Park, boat dock at Windy Point, and a bathroom at Cowhouse Boat Ramp. Mr. Ford said that he would make the creation of this list an action item and that he felt it was a good idea. 4) Committee membership We are waiting for by-law changes to make various changes and additions. Mr. Dwinell asked that we review the Lorida committee membership. Ms. Porter has not attended in quite some time and moved out of state. Once by-laws have been approved and finalized Spring Lake will be added and the Hunter/Angler category will be removed. 5) By-law updates No change. Mr. Ford stated that he was hopeful it would be completed in July. 6) Istokpoga Watershed Management Master Plan Update Same as by-laws. Hopeful completion July. 7) A) Hydrologic conditions Mr. Ford stated that yesterday the lake was at B) Water quality / project updates Marsh Project. Mr. Ford presented a graph (projected) which shows that the values for TP in the marsh are about ½ of that found in the open water lake. The average for the marsh is about.035ppb and the average for the lake is about.066ppb. Historically the lake was in the.040 s ppb. Mr. Galloway asked why we don t sample in the south and east and Mr. Ford answered that most of FWC s management was on the west and north ends. Mr. Furse stated that the purpose of the study was to find out if there were TP and TN differences between the marsh and open water and if you open up the marsh are you negatively impacting water quality. Mr. Ford stated that it is not a true picture of what is going on and that we should be collecting sediment samples too. C) Habitat management presentation by Steve Gornak about habitat management in the upcoming fiscal year. There are two treatment techniques; spray using helicopter or airboat and mechanical. The plans include treating 800 acres by helicopter and 200 acres by airboat. The airboat work will be somewhere between Istokpoga Canal and Cowhouse boat ramp. The chemicals to be used are Clearcast for cattail and Glypho + 2, 4-D. Surveys will be conducted in August 2013 and that will determine where the work will occur. The goal is to improve fish and wildlife habitat. There are two types of mechanical harvesters being used; traditional floating aquatic harvester and an excavator on a Page 2 of 5

6 barge (best when used in combination). One of the areas to mechanically treated is the northern portion of the cut west of Big Island. Another area is northeast of Bumblebee Island where much work occurred in The areas to be harvested are 5 and 10 acre plots of dense vegetation. Within these plots stands of bulrush and willow are left intact. Material will be placed on existing spoil islands. Additionally, there are about 25 acres of Lygodium to be treated in the fall using a helicopter with the herbicide, Escort. The goal is to knock down the Lygodium without killing the willow. Clearcast work in October This work was designed to work in the large marsh area south of Big Island which had become dominated by cattail. The goal was to treat the cattail while leaving desirable natives intact. This area has been monitored every month since treatment. We have noticed that the desirable species brown out but come back while the cattail dies. The next question is, how long will this area be affected by the herbicide; one or multiple years. D) Aquatic Plant Management Kelle Sullivan is on vacation however Mr. Gornak provided a synopsis of Kelle s recent presentation to the public. Kelle has divided the lake into 8 basins treating each as a separate lake. The northern basins will remain Hydrilla free as well as the entire littoral zone. Rather than attempting to maintain Hydrilla in specific areas on the lake, there will be a target acreage of Hydrilla and based on what Hydrilla is doing, it will be decided where this acreage will be left untreated in any given year. E) Spoil Island Removal no funding available; low priority for FWC. Mr. Albin did mention that people are having trouble with the thick vegetation forming around the islands and Mr. Gornak did say FWC could help with that. F) Lake Okeechobee Watershed Mr. Ritter provided update; the legislature appropriated 78 million dollars for Everglades projects. 32 million of that will go to construction projects in the northern Everglades area, projects like dispersed water management, stormwater treatment, and reservoirs. 30 million will go to CERP for central Everglades (south of the lake). That money will be used to look at alternatives to moving water south. The challenge is meeting the 10 ppb standard; cannot release water if it doesn t meet the standard. 3.5 million will go to the Department of Agriculture for Best Management Practices (for nutrient reduction) in the entire watershed. Some money will go to the St. Lucy and Caloosahatchee areas where the water management district is in negotiations with Duda and Sons to purchase land on the north side of Lake Hicpochee which will handle water coming down the C19 canal. This water can be released directly from Okeechobee. Mr. Ritter stated that he would be able to provide more details at the next LIMC meeting because they are having a presentation concerning dispersed water management (project manager Matt Morrison). There is a new agricultural director for the water management district named Jeff Sumner from Okeechobee. He will be handling all ag-related programs in the 16 county district including dispersed water management projects. BMAP will be holding its third meeting at the Kissimmee Civic Center on June 11 at The first two meetings covered numerous project updates including Istokpoga and Arbuckle Creek. Mr. Galloway asked about the Okeechobee levee. Mr. Ritter stated that they would probably finished Reach 1 in about 5 years and after that they will begin replacing culverts that run through the levee. They are old and could be compromised. Each Page 3 of 5

7 culvert takes 2.5 years to replace. Once Reach 1 has been completed they will revisit the lake level situation (now managed at ) and discuss whether or not they could go to This would greatly increase storage and they wouldn t have to release water to people who don t want it. Mr. Galloway also asked whether or not the water management district would be looking at water storage in the watershed and stopping water waste. Mr. Ritter stated that CERP and the Northern Everglades projects are in place to answer those questions. For example, St. Lucy doesn t want any water from Okeechobee because it was never a natural waterway however Caloosahatchee does want some water because it was part of the natural drainage. Mr. Galloway mentioned that if all these plans come to be, it will be good for Lake Istokpoga and maybe agencies can stop thinking of it as a water storage unit. Mr. Ritter went on to state that the water control network in south Florida was began in the 1940 s and finished in The system is very good at moving water and preventing flooding. It has however caused some environmental issues. Since 2000 they have begun to retool the entire system to handle flooding, environmental issues, and water quality issues. G) Spring Lake Improvement District projects and plans Mr. Shrum stated that water retention projects were moving forward to eventually create about 100 acres of storage adjacent to Arbuckle Creek. There are 1520 houses in Spring Lake and 17 miles of canals/ditches to be maintained. The cost of these projects plus land acquisition is quite high so SLID is looking for assistance with funding. SLID, with the assistance of Mr. Ford, completed a 319 grant proposal for FDEP and they are looking at a USDA loan. SLID has formed an MOU with the Airport Authority, FDOT, SFWMD, and Highlands County which helps when going after grants (partnerships). Someone from SLID will be attending the next BMAP meeting and there may be some funding opportunities there as well. The projects are very costly so every little bit helps. Mr. Ritter said they deserve a pat on the back for all they have done with no assistance whatsoever. They have most likely spent around 3 million dollars. H) Istokpoga Marsh Watershed District Mr. Ford mentioned they were meeting tomorrow to discuss an outflow structure on CR 621 between the lake and the caladium fields which has developed a leak. The entire structure may have to be replaced which would involve CR 621. This is an expensive project and the district is seeking assistance with funding. This is independent of the above ground water retention project which has received funding and is proceeding. Mr. Galloway pointed out that if the water control structure were to fail, it would be very bad for the lake as well as the caladium farmers. Mr. Dwinell asked that Mr. Ford provide a full update with maps at the next LIMC meeting. I) Other agencies Mr. Ford speaking for Erin Duffy (Army Corp of Engineers) presented a photograph of a new rail bridge over the Kissimmee River. It is located just west of River Acres and very important to the river restoration project. The federal government paid for the bridge. Mr. Ford also mentioned that the two new structures (S-68 and S-67) have been turned over to the water management district for operation. Mr. Ford asked Mr. Ritter if the committee could have a tour of the facility and Mr. Ritter responded yes and asked if the group would like to make the field trip a part of the August meeting. The meeting could be continued at the Lorida Community Center. August 22 or 29 was proposed. 8) Items from other committee members Mr. Ford mentioned the small fish kill on Lake Placid and that Page 4 of 5

8 there is a fish kill hotline number. If you see a fish kill (more than just a few fish) please call the hotline so it may be investigated if necessary. You can also call Mr. Ford or Mr. Pouder. 9) Public Comment None 10) Announcements LIMC information is available on-line. Spring Meeting, Summer meeting to follow FWC summer public aquatic plant management workshop (late August), Fall meeting December 2013 (probably first week in December). Meeting adjourned at Page 5 of 5