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-9- Knoxvillians love their lakes— and nothing can be so discourag- ing as to see a lake filled with trash. For many years, Knoxvillians were concerned about Fort Loudoun Lake. “Trash and debris—including tires, dead animals, and fallen trees—were floating in and down the waterway and collecting on the side,” says Angela Howard, current Executive Director of the Fort Loudoun Lake Association (FLLA). “There was nobody respon- sible for clean up.” And so, in 2006, a group of Knoxville businesspeople founded the FLLA, an organization committed to “promoting the eco- nomic benefit and quality of life value of clean water” in Fort Loudoun Lake. The FLLA monitors Fort Loudoun Lake from the beginning of the Ten- nessee River, where the Holston and French Broad Rivers come together, down to the Fort Loud- oun Dam. “We actually monitor 50 miles of the river,” says Howard. With only one full-time and one part- time zone manager monitoring eight zones of the river, it’s all the organiza- tion can do to keep the largest and most hazardous trash out of the water. The zone managers, currently Jake Hudson and Kirk Forgety, focus mainly on larger objects, such as fallen trees, removing them from the water to clear the path for boaters. They also watch the riverbanks for signs of erosion. “I don’t think people really un- derstand how big an impact this organization has on the quality of the water around us,” says Board of Directors member David Kiger. Kiger was one of the founding directors of the organization. He adds that, “One person can make a big difference to the organization,” as all donations are used to directly fund the person- nel who are out on the water daily. The FLLA must rely on volunteers to help their fulltime staff by collect- ing the trash along the riverbank, but with 356 miles of shoreline in their purview, the task sometimes seems impossible. Ideally, the FLLA would like to extend its reach to care for a larger area. “The possibilities are endless— the watershed is huge,” says Howard. But for now, their focus is on caring for the 56 miles of lake for which they are responsible. You can check the calendar on their website for scheduled “cleanup days” or contact the organiza- tion directly if you’d like to help out. In addition to trash collection, the FLLA also has a scientist on staff, Mike Gaugler, Ph.D., who “monitors storm water management and the health of streams and creeks through biological testing for pathogens,” says Howard. Their organization works with government agencies like the EPA and other water qual- ity agents to study what the system needs and to eliminate hazardous items, such as E. Coli, from the lake. In addition to cleanup days, the FLLA hosts events throughout the year that raise both funds and awareness for their cause. The annual Raising of the Water Celebration commemorates the opening of the lake to boaters each spring and features live music, food, and an auction. This year, the Paddle for Clean Water offered Knoxvillians a chance to paddle canoes and kayaks for five miles through downtown Knox- ville, while regular social gatherings allow the community to stay involved and connected to the organization. The FLLA also focuses on educat- ing the community about how to keep the lake and river clean for many years to come. Eliminating trash and littering is a step in the right direc- tion, says Howard, but there are also problems that you can’t see. Though the river has been cleaned up due to EPA regulations, runoff from agricul- ture and industry, as well as runoff from neighborhoods, businesses, and parking lots, can cause serious harm. “People often don’t realize that when you pressure wash your home, or wash your car, the chemicals you use to clean flow down your driveway and into the sewer and then into the lakes and rivers,” says Howard. Fort Loudoun Lake Association ASSOCIATION PROFILE CITYVW_B1-24.indd 9 12/28/12 10:29 AM
