Rich Eicher - Johns Lake Association

February 5, 2023February 5, 2023

JLA Advocates for Johns Lake at Oakland Town Meeting Discussing Major Issues with the Outfall Canal (Feb. 2023)

February 5, 2023

JLA Advocates for Johns Lake at Oakland Town Meeting Discussing Major Issues with the Outfall Canal (Feb. 2023)

Rich Eicher

Progress has been made toward resolving significant concerns with the Johns Lake Outfall Canal.

According to an article published by the WEST ORANGE TIMES & OBSERVER (Feb 1, 2023), “The town of Oakland has agreed to lead the mission to determine what course of action needs to take place to remedy the serious property issues that have arisen because of changing flow patterns in the Johns Lake Outfall Canal — and exactly who will be responsible for the costs. Commissioner Mike Satterfield stepped up to lead the discussions during the Tuesday, Jan. 24, Oakland Town Commission meeting.”

In the article, Town Manager Steve Koontz is reported to have said “there are two major aspects to the outfall canal issues: the rerouting of the flow, slowing down the velocity of the water and the removal of sediment at the terminus of the canal; and the long-term funding, stabilization and maintenance of the entire length of the canal.”

Johns Lake Association (JLA) president, Rick Steubing, and board member Scott Boyd attended and advocated for Johns Lake at the meeting. Critical will be plans and funding for ongoing upkeep, maintenance, and repairs of the canal, not only for the benefit of Lake Apopka homeowners but also for Johns Lake homeowners as well.

The full article written by Amy Quesinberry can be found here.

This has been an important issue for many years. The former president of the JLA, John Schmidt, has published several informative articles over the past few years, including the JOHNS LAKE OUTFALL STUDY (Oct. 2019), the JOHNS LAKE DRAINAGE STUDY UPDATE (Feb. 2020), and the JOHNS LAKE OUTFALL STUDY UPDATE (Oct. 2020).

* Image published by the WEST ORANGE TIMES & OBSERVER (Feb. 1, 2023)

August 1, 2018April 6, 2022

Johns Lake Improvement Association Financial Statement

For year ended 12/31/17

Balance at 01/01/17	$6,884.46
Income
Member dues	1,430.00
Interest received	0.69
Balance with income	8315.15
Expenses
Cattails mailings	263.10
Corporate filing fee	61.25
P.O. box annual fee	68.00
Commercial service charge	8.00
Donation ONP	150.00
Donation FOLA	100.00
Total expenses	650.35

Balance at 12/31/17	$7,664.80

State and Local Agencies

Lake County Aquatic Plant Management
(352) 343-9419
Lake County Department of Environmental Utilities
(352) 343-3776
Orange County Environmental Protection Agency
(407) 836-7400
Florida Department of Environmental Protection (EDPA)
(407) 893-3303
St. Johns River Water Management District
(386) 329-1429 or (407) 897-4346
Orange Storm Water Management
(407) 836-7990
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission
(407) 858-6170
Town of Oakland
Dennis Foltz – town manager (407) 656-1117, ext 2103

JLIA Board of Directors

Martin Davis
President
407 877-3455

Ann Megler
Treasurer
407 654-1269

Don Hickman
Secretary
407 656-2392

Mary Louise Grable
407 656-2919

August 1, 2018April 6, 2022

Johns Lake Boat Parade: Save the Date!

August 1, 2018

Johns Lake Boat Parade: Save the Date!

The 18th Annual Johns Lake Holiday Boat Parade will be held on Sunday, Dec. 16, 2018. We will be sending out information, and looking for volunteers to help.

Next Meeting

An announcement will be sent before the next meeting. Anyone wanting to attend is welcome. If you want to get more involved, this is your opportunity.

Share the News

Share this newsletter with your neighbors, and ask them to let us know if they want to receive information regarding our lake.

November 1, 2017April 2, 2022

Plants for the Lakefront

November 1, 2017

Plants for the Lakefront

Mary Louise Grable

For some reason many lakefront homeowners have the erroneous concept that the perfect landscape should include a lakeshore comprised entirely of sand. There are numerous attractive plants that benefit wildlife, help control erosion, protect water quality and should be included in the landscape plan.
Shoreline vegetation that is beneficial should not be removed simply to construct a beach. In fact certain trees and endangered plants cannot be removed. Plants that are native to the area greatly reduce or eliminate the need for the use of fertilizers and pesticides. It is okay to remove invasive nonnative vegetation such as torpedo grass, but some of the shoreline needs to be replaced with native plants. There is an excellent website that provides substantial information on restoring the lakefront. Go to Seminole County’s website to find all you need to know about the many aspects of the process.

An emergent plant known as Duck Potato or broadleaf arrowhead has lance shaped leaves and provides showy white flowers with three petals. The flowers appear on stalks that are taller than the leaves. It is a Florida native and grows well at the shoreline or in the water. The tubers are edible and were once a staple for the indigenous people.

Maidencane, a native Florida grass, is excellent for shoreline stabilization. It is a perennial grass growing 2 – 5 feet in height and is found only in freshwater. Although it can get out of control, it is easier to manage and should not be confused with torpedo grass (Panicum repens) which is a nonnative invasive species and almost impossible to control.

Pickerelweed is an attractive Florida native plant found in shallow freshwater and often used as an ornamental plant in water gardens. It is easily recognizable by its beautiful violet blue, uncommonly white, flower spikes which bloom almost the entire year. It is common, extending by rhizomes to the height of 2 – 4 feet. Bees and butterflies are attracted to the flowers, ducks and people eat the seeds and the leaves can be boiled like greens. The plant provides good cover for birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, insects and
swimming mammals.
It is doubtful that cypress trees were once found on Johns Lake, but currently several lakefront landowners have been successful in growing them. These unique trees dominate the wetlands and are the most tolerant of floods of all Florida trees. The deciduous, often Spanish moss laden conifer has been part of the landscape for thousands of years. It is excellent as wildlife habitat, for flood control and maintaining water quality.

Bald cypress grows mainly in wetlands over many years and may reach over 100 feet.
Its leaves are linear and spread on branchlets. Pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens) does not grow as large and favors depressions in pond and lake margins. Its leaves are awl-shaped and press against branchlets. Some botanists consider them separate species; others as variations of the same species. Both are unique and attractive trees.

In addition to the plants identified in the above article, other commonly found native plants are shown below. There are may species available from some of our local aquascpaing
nurseries. They are all beautiful additions to your lakefront landscape, and you will be amazed at the number of birds, butterflies, fish and mammals that will be visiting your new and Florida Native shoreline!

Fire flag

(Thalia geniculata)

Soft rush

(Juncus effuses)

Swamp lily

(Crinum americanum)

Golden canna

(Canna Flaccida)

Blue flag iris

(Iris Virginica)

Scarlet hibiscus

(Hibuscus coccones)

November 1, 2017April 2, 2022

Grass Carp

November 1, 2017

Grass Carp

Mary Louise Grable

Grass carp are nonnative fish imported from Asia for the control of higher invasive aquatic plant species such as hydrilla. They are a more cost effective method of control than using herbicides
or the use of mechanical means. A combination of the methods is the most effective in trying to control hydrilla. Estimates for using grass carp to control hydrilla are $15 per acre as opposed to $100 – $500 per acre using herbicides. Mechanical harvesting is even more expensive.

Grass carp are one of the largest members of the minnow family. Their life span is approximately 15 years. It takes about 6 months to a year for the fish to become effective in controlling vegetation. One of the few species of fish that eats plants, the grass carp does not eat all varieties of plants. It is important that overstocking does not occur. The grass carp found in Florida lakes have three sets of chromosomes (triploid) and are certified to be sterile. The largest triploid found in Florida was 15 years old, measured 56 inches in length and weighed 75 pounds.

These fish have large scales with a silvery to dark gray back, lighter golden sides and white belly. The body is round with a broad head. The fish are stocked in Johns Lake. Sometimes they are caught while fishing for tilapia or catfish. If a grass carp is caught, it is required that it be released

November 1, 2017April 2, 2022

Brevard County’s Indian River Lagoon

November 1, 2017

Brevard County’s Indian River Lagoon

J. Martin Davis, P.E.

….. Is it the ghost of Christmas Future for Johns Lake?

In November 2016 voters in Brevard County, by a margin of over 63 percent, approved a half-cent sales tax to provide $302 million over a 10 year period to clean up the increasingly polluted waters of the Indian River Lagoon. This water body has been increasingly threatened over the past 5 years by fish kills, algae blooms and increasing levels of nitrogen and phosphorous. About two-thirds of the money will go toward removing muck from the bottom of the lagoon, estimated to be just under 5 million cubic yards. Another $62 million will be spent for septic system removal and sewer plant upgrades to supplement the loss of the septic systems.

At the risk of being overly alarmist, could there be parallels between the Indian River lagoon and Johns Lake? Population growth and the unending appeal of living on a body of water insures that development will continue on every available developable parcel on Johns Lake, just as it is occurring on the Indian River Lagoon. And, as we’ve explored in past Cattales issues (June 2016), several of the older communities on Johns Lake are on septic tanks, albeit the more recent development have been on sewer systems. We’ve also looked at the water quality parameters published by Florida Lakewatch since water sampling for Johns Lake began in 1989. This data indicated that the water quality parameters, including the all important nitrogen and phosphorous levels, have remained relatively stable.

A clue to this serendipity may lie on the graph of Johns Lake historical water levels, included below, which was also included in the last issue of Cattales.

Johns Lake Levels 1959-2016

You will note that lake levels appear to reach very low levels at approximately 20 to 25 year intervals, as evidenced by the low lake levels that occurred in 1980 and 2001 where the low water levels were around elevation 86 or less. It’s difficult to visualize the impact of this lake level until one sees, as is shown by the included aerial photo of Johns Lake, circa 2002, just how much of the lake bottom is exposed by these drought events.

But this fluctuation of water level in Johns Lake is actually a very beneficial and helpful attribute of our lake. See, Johns Lake does not have springs or streams that provide a constant source of water into the lake. Rather our lake relies on rainfall, runoff and groundwater levels to replenish and maintain lake water levels. As such, our lake water levels are quite variable, as variable as the Florida weather.

But this is actually a major benefit in terms of maintaining water quality. During these periodic dry spells and the ensuing drop in water levels, large swaths of the lake bottom are exposed to the drying effects of sun and wind on any accumulated muck that may have been deposited on the lake bottom, drying out and blowing away the muck that otherwise might remain and accumulate indefinitely. If the Indian River Lagoon had these fluctuating water levels, it is unlikely $200 million would now be spent on muck removal.
So, we’re golden, right. With this built-in environmental lake bottom vacuum cleaner we’ve got, we’re good
to go …right? I think not so fast. 50 years ago the environmental pollutants that now affect the Indian River
Lagoon were by and large unidentified, or at least ignored. Let’s keep our collective heads up lest we suffer
the same fate.