PROJECT K.L.E.A.R. – A 5-YEAR EXECUTIVE MASTER PLAN FOR EURASIAN WATERMILFOIL ERADICATION ON KELLY LAKE

For over a decade, the Kelly Lake Advancement Association (KLAA) has successfully managed Eurasian Watermilfoil (EWM) through targeted herbicides and volunteer-based hand harvesting. However, these are perpetual suppression tactics, not a permanent cure. To protect the lake's 367 acres of water, its pristine walleye fishery, and long-term shoreline property values, we must pivot from manual maintenance to an aggressive, technology-driven eradication model.

Please note that Project KLEAR is presented as a working proposal. It is designed to serve as a starting point for the community, and every phase is open to feedback, adjustment, and refinement as we determine the best path forward together.

This 5-year, $2.2M master plan leverages autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), genetic monitoring, precision chemistry, and strategic university partnerships to drive EWM to functionally zero and secure the lake's borders permanently.

THE 5-YEAR ERADICATION ROADMAP

• Year 1: Intelligence & Shock-and-Awe: Partnering with commercial aquatic robotics firms, we deploy AUV swarms to map the lakebed using hydroacoustic sonar and machine learning. Once the exact EWM biomass is mapped down to the centimeter, GPS-guided drone boats deploy a precision strike of ProcellaCOR* to collapse the deep-water mats without harming native pondweeds.

*ProcellaCOR is a highly targeted aquatic herbicide that eradicates invasive milfoil by mimicking a plant hormone, forcing the weed to grow so rapidly that it destroys its own root system. Because it strictly targets this specific plant biology, it leaves native ecosystems unharmed and carries an EPA "Reduced Risk" designation with absolutely no restrictions for swimming, fishing, or drinking.

• Year 2: Surgical AUV/DASH Fleet: With the dense mats eliminated, AUVs patrol nightly to GPS-tag individual EWM sprouts. At dawn, professional Diver-Assisted Suction Harvesting (DASH) teams use these coordinates to manually extract the entire plant and root ball via suction, ensuring zero fragmentation.

• Year 3: Deep Smothering & Shallow Biocontrol: For EWM surviving in Kelly Lake's 41-foot deep drop-offs, Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) deploy biodegradable burlap benthic barriers to completely smother the root crowns. Simultaneously, native milfoil weevils are introduced to shallow, un-mowed shorelines to organically consume stragglers where divers cannot easily operate.

• Year 4: eDNA Dragnet: We transition from visual hunting to genetic hunting. Automated filtration buoys are stationed across the lake to monitor for environmental DNA (eDNA) shed by unseen EWM. Any positive hit dispatches a standby DASH kill-team to eradicate the sprouting seed before it fragments.

• Year 5: Community-Led Prevention & Border Security: To ensure EWM is never reintroduced, we will rely on community-driven accountability rather than physical barriers. We will install automated, high-pressure CD3 boat washing stations at Kelly Lake's public launches, giving boaters the exact tools they need to clean their own equipment. Alongside this technology, we will launch the Kelly Lake Ambassador Program—creating summer jobs for local students to staff the boat launches during peak weekends, greet visitors, and assist with trailer inspections. Finally, passive, solar-powered camera systems will provide 24/7 video monitoring and friendly audio reminders at the ramps, fostering a culture of accountability without restricting public access.

• Year 6 & Beyond: The Perpetual Stewardship Phase: With the EWM biomass functionally eradicated, the Project KLEAR capital campaign officially concludes. Long-term monitoring of the lake now transitions back to the standard KLAA operating budget. Using low-cost eDNA spot-testing and our established Volunteer Lake Ambassadors, we will maintain a permanent, inexpensive watch over the water. By maintaining this baseline security, if a single milfoil fragment ever enters the lake, it can be caught and removed for a few hundred dollars rather than millions.
  

FINANCIAL STRATEGY: FUNDING THE $2.2M PLAN WITHOUT NEW TAXES
A project of this scale costs an estimated $2.2 million over five years. The traditional advice for raising this money is for the KLAA to form a "Lake District"—a new municipal unit of government with the power to levy property taxes on lakefront owners.

While becoming a Lake District is legally possible, it is not our best option. We are already overtaxed as it is. Opening the door to a new taxing authority creates a permanent government board that could continuously raise taxes long after the milfoil is gone. We want to avoid that entirely.

Instead, we propose funding Project K.L.E.A.R. through a combination of tech subsidies, private capital, and state grants:

1. Funding Path 1: The Tech Proving Ground Subsidy: A massive portion of this budget is the cost of cutting-edge robotics (AUV swarms, AI gates, eDNA buoys). Instead of buying this tech, we pitch Kelly Lake as a highly controlled, real-world testing ground for university robotics labs (like UW systems or the University of Minnesota) and commercial drone startups. By letting them use our lake for their R&D, they bring their million-dollar robots and graduate students to the lake for free, funded entirely by their own institutional grants.
   
2. Funding Path 2: The "Anchor Angel" Capital Campaign: To cover the hard costs of the DASH divers and chemicals, we launch a targeted private capital campaign. We approach a few "anchor" families who have deep generational ties to the lake and ask them to quietly pledge a combined matching grant (e.g., $500,000). We then present this to the broader community as a challenge: "We have half a million dollars secured, but we only get it if the rest of the lake pledges to match it over five years."
   
3. Funding Path 3: WDNR Surface Water Grants: Once we have our private funding secured, we use it to apply for WDNR Large-Scale Population Management Grants. The state can legally cover up to 75% of our chemical and diver costs. By using private donations as our 25% match, we can unlock state money without ever needing to tax the residents.
   

ESTIMATED COST BY PHASE (BEFORE GRANTS & SUBSIDIES)

• Year 1: AUV 3D mapping, genetic profiling, targeted ProcellaCOR strike - $560,000
  
• Year 2: Proprietary AUV nightly patrols, commercial DASH armada (12 weeks) - $565,000
  
• Year 3: Biodegradable burlap barriers via ROV, lab-reared weevil biocontrol - $300,000
  
• Year 4: Automated eDNA buoy network, lab processing, DASH standby team - $300,000
  
• Year 5: CD3 waterless cleaning stations, AI thermal inspection gates - $430,000
  

Total 5-Year Comprehensive Eradication Plan: $2,155,000

This plan shifts Kelly Lake from playing perpetual defense to executing a terminal offense. It is a one-time capital investment that eliminates the compounding, multi-generational costs of endless weed management and secures the lake's ecosystem for the future—all without handing our checkbooks over to a new taxing authority.