The Lake Iroquois Association (LIA), a non-profit organization focused on the health and well-being of Lake Iroquois, and the Lake Iroquois Recreation District (LIRD), a union municipal district comprised of the four towns of Williston, Hinesburg, Richmond, and St. George, have received a $320,000 federal grant as part of fiscal year 2023 Congressionally Directed Spending.
This grant will allow remediation of Beebe Lane which has been a major contributor of polluted runoff into the lake. Implementation of this plan will install stormwater best management practices on Beebe Lane, to prevent flooding and road washouts, to reduce pollutants from entering the lake, and to improve water quality. The project will also enhance public access to recreational opportunities. Beebe Lane serves as the access road to the 157-acre LIRD property at the north end of Lake Iroquois and provides access to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife boat launch, LIRD public access beach, and a nearly two-mile loop of walking trails.
The Lake Iroquois Association and the Lake Iroquois Recreation District have worked closely together for a number of years to improve the lake’s water quality, educate lake users on aquatic invasives species prevention, and improve community access to a broad range of recreational opportunities on and adjacent to Lake Iroquois. By working together to acquire a grant for matching funds from Watersheds United Vermont, additional support pledged by LIA and LIRD, and through the help and support of Ms. Haley Pero, Outreach Director for the Office of Senator Bernie Sanders, this project achieved successful Congressional approval.
LIA and LIRD are grateful for this opportunity to build upon recent successes that includes becoming only the third lake in the state to achieve Lake Wise Gold status and the mitigation of Eurasian watermilfoil.
The federal funding is timely given the marked increase in boating, fishing, and swimming on the lake observed by LIA’s Greeter Program the last few years, along with a 50% increase in LIRD beach passes sold from 2021 to 2022.