Cycling for LWF, summer success and an update on zebra mussels
Dear LWF supporter,
We’ve enjoyed the opportunity to connect with so many people this summer, and we wanted to touch base with you one last time before the season ends.
Cycling for Solutions
This coming Friday, Aug. 21, four amateur cyclists (including LWF’s president Roger Mollot) will embark on an ambitious challenge: a three-day, 470 km road trip from Winnipeg to the IISD Experimental Lakes Area (IISD-ELA) in Ontario, one of Canada’s primary sources of lake science.
This fundraising event has been independently organized as a 10 for 10 event in celebration of our 10-year anniversary and to highlight the value of the aquatic science generated by IISD-ELA.
Donations in support of Cycling for Solutions can be made online through LWF’s CanadaHelps page; please choose the “Cycling for Solutions 2015” fund to ensure your donation is allocated accordingly. You can also share words of encouragement in the provided comment field.
The riders are aiming to provide updates from the road on the Cycling for Solutions Facebook event page. We wish Roger, Brad, Bruce and Pete a safe and fun trip!
Walk for Water 2015
A big thank you to the volunteers, participants, sponsors, prize donors and everyone else who helped make this year’s Walk for Water events in Dunnottar, Gimli and Victoria Beach such a success. We had a great time – and together, we raised over $35,000 for LWF! We are inspired and humbled by the passion and commitment of our supporters.
Selected photos from Walk for Water 2015 are now up on our website and Facebook page.
An update on zebra mussels
It’s been almost two years since zebra mussels were first discovered in Lake Winnipeg.
An invasive species, these small, striped D-shaped mollusks use hair-like filaments called byssal threads to attach themselves to hard surfaces such as boats, docks, water-intake pipes and even the shells of other mussels. They multiple rapidly and are known to preferentially feed on benign algae, leaving behind potentially toxic cyanobacteria. As well, the waste they produce has the potential to change the lake’s chemistry and affect the food web.
Adult mussels and their microscopic larvae (known as veligers) have now been detected as far north as Hecla Island/Grindstone Point, as far south as the Red River, and throughout Lake Winnipeg’s south basin. While this is an unfortunate development for Manitoba’s great lake, we have the opportunity to work together to protect other rivers and lakes throughout the province.
All water users – boaters in particular – can help stop the spread of zebra mussels by remembering to “clean, drain, dry and dispose”:
- Clean your watercraft with hot water and high pressure
- Drain water from all gear
- Dry equipment for at least five days in the hot sun during summer
- Dispose of unwanted live bait and worms in the trash
To report a zebra mussel finding, visit www.manitoba.ca/stopais or call 1-87-STOP AIS-0 (1-877-867-2470).
Thank you for your continued support,
The LWF team
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