TLAC tentatively approves work plan

The Tri-County Lake Administrative Commission voted to tentatively approve its 2010 work plan at its Tuesday meeting. Some of TLAC’s duties will change when Appalachian Power’s new license to operate Smith Mountain and Leesville dams goes into effect on April 1.

At the board’s next meeting on April 6, the work plan could be changed if needed. In the meantime, Pam Dinkle, TLAC’s lake management and project coordinator, will continue revising TLAC’s tasks.

The board also voted to send the tentative plan to Appalachian Power for feedback.

In other TLAC news:

• All current members were reappointed to the TLAC board. All officers were re-elected to their positions, with Chuck Neudorfer serving as chairman, Stan Smith as vice chairman and Ralph Brush as secretary/treasurer.

• All nine members of the Environmental Committee were reappointed and Bob Camicia was reappointed as chairman.

• All eight members of the Navigation Committee were reappointed and Smith was reappointed as chairman.

• TLAC released a request for proposals (RFP) on Feb. 10 for aquatic vegetation treatment. Bids are due on March 10. The Environmental Committee will review the bids and offer a recommendation to the board in April.

• The board voted to release an RFP for an aquatic vegetation full lake survey, tentatively scheduled for late August or early September.

• Camicia said the Environmental Committee recommends gathering a group of several experts who can advise TLAC on aquatic vegetation issues.

• The Navigation Committee voted to alter navigation light flash patterns and intensity to increase the lifetime of the solar lights, said Smith. At sharp turns and where the distance to the light is long, light intensity will be reduced to 75 percent. In areas without sharp turns, the flash rate will be reduced to 30 flashes per minute.

• The board voted for TLAC to participate in the Smith Mountain Lake Association’s annual town hall meeting on March 23, by invitation from SMLA. Neudorfer will represent TLAC at the meeting.

• TLAC voted to send a letter to the Department of Environmental Quality in support of their efforts to have a crane that fell in the lake on Oct. 5 to be removed by the end of March so it’s out before the boating season begins.

• Appalachian Power plans to use TLAC’s large-debris removal contractor in mid-March to clean up large items that came into the lake during storms in the last few months. Dinkle said most of the work will be done between B34 and B39. Appalachian has approved a one-week project, but can extend it to two weeks if needed.

• The Take Pride in SML committee, of which TLAC is a member, has voted not to distribute T-shirts this year, said Dinkle. Instead, debris-cleanup volunteers will be given tote bags. Dinkle said tote bags were a popular option last year and are less expensive than T-shirts, allowing for more money to be spent on the cleanup effort.

For more information about TLAC, call 721-4400 or visit www.sml.us.com.