Chapter 5 - A Citizen's Manual for Developing Integrated Aquatic Vegetation Management Plans

The Importance of Public Involvement

Once an aquatic-plant growth problem has been recognized, it is crucial to bring all interested and affected parties together early on to participate in planning. Identifying people who have an interest in the water body often requires a bit of searching. The water body may serve a variety of groups with sometimes conflicting interests. several state, county or local governments and agencies may be involved. Private businesses or other interest groups may have concerns about the water body as well.

Pulling all these parties together is like weaving a piece of fabric, and each group interested in the water body is like a different strand of thread. As the strands are woven into the cloth, it becomes stronger. The end product—achieving consensus among the parties—is like the strongly interwoven cloth. The objective is to encourage cooperation and gather support for the management program, but the benefits of community participation go beyond this. Informed citizens, agencies and other groups who become involved in a water body management project share information about:

• The ecology of the aquatic system
• Whether the system can be managed
• Different government agencies
• Special organizations with an interest in fresh-water management
• Leadership, organization, and cooperation.

Public Involvement Steps

Public involvement means the participation of the entire community. However, it is the role of the steering committee to do the initial leg work — gathering information and developing draft proposals to present to the community. important elements in the public involvement process are:

1. Identify interested groups
2. Conduct public meetings
3. Keep the community informed

1. Identify interested groups: The steering committee identifies interested groups and compiles a list of appropriate contacts. The committee should already have a good handle on potential user and interest groups, having considered this topic in step a. Some groups that may have an interest in management of an aquatic system are:

• Residents or property owners around the water body
• Special user groups (e.g., bass anglers, ducks unlimited
• Local government
• State and federal agencies (e.g., State Department of Ecology)
• Native American tribes
• Water-related businesses (e.g., resorts, tackle & bait shops, dive shops)
• Elected officials
• Environmental groups (e.g., Audubon).

2. Conduct public meetings: One of the best ways to reach the public is a meeting sponsored by an existing lake association or community club. These are usually made up of property owners around the water body. If no lake association exists, it is worthwhile to form one. State and national management organizations can offer additional information contacts. Public meetings are a good way to attract individuals from within and outside the association. Local government officials, state agency personnel, local tribes, business people, and environmental and other user groups should all be invited to participate in these meetings.

Tip: Many of the identified groups consist of volunteers who may have limited time to participate in public meetings. It is a good idea to contact these people well in advance of the event so they can plan their time accordingly. Meetings will most likely need to be scheduled for evenings or weekends.

Timing is critical. Public meetings should be conducted at strategic stages in the planning process. critical points are:

1. At the formative stages, following completion of steps a and b
2. When possible plant control alternatives have been identified by the steering committee (after step h)
3. After a control scenario has been selected, but before it is carried out (after step j)
4. During implementation of the control scenario
5. During post-treatment evaluation.

Obtaining widespread support is crucial. It is crucial that the interested parties support and accept proposed aquatic-plant management actions. it is a good idea to collect written documentation of this support to have on record. later on, the supportive documentation can be useful for purposes of clarification or emphasis.

3. Keep the community informed: Newsletters sent to association members and other interest groups and agencies are a good way to keep the public informed. The organization initiating the planning process needs to stay in personal contact with these other interest groups. Members of the steering committee or other association members, for example, could accept invitations to participate in meetings of groups interested in the lake and present information on aquatic-plant management.

Notes on Consensus Building

Consensus building in a diverse group can be a most challenging task. It may be difficult to get people with different interests to agree 100 percent on an issue. But it is critical to bring all groups together in the planning process to constructively discuss the issues and work toward achieving a consensus. To lead the effort, it will be helpful to identify individuals with strong, steadying leadership qualities. The following are some practical suggestions for achieving a common goal in a group:

• Acknowledge that each person's opinion is important.
• Emphasize that this is a group endeavor.
• Use expert advice to clarify misconceptions.
• Emphasize the community benefits of management actions.

References on Public Involvement/Lake Management Organizations

• Starting and Building an Effective Lake Association²⁶
• The Lake and Reservoir Restoration Guidance Manual (appendix 3a)⁴
• Management Guide for Lakes and Reservoirs, Chapter 3.1⁵
• Washington State Lake Protection Association^h
• North American Lake Management Societyⁱ

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