Decision Support for Lake Sustainability
Safeguarding recreational boating and protecting Minnesota lakes through science-based guidance
New
Challenge
Lake managers are asking for help understanding and implementing scientific-based research into policies for their specific lake. Effective decision-making at the local level is complex, with many external viewpoints, complex science, and murky processes for rulemaking on public waters.
Before effectively creating decision-support tools for lake community partners, we need to listen to community partners to understand their needs, preferences, and barriers to integrating research findings into lake use policies and practice.
Impact Goal
Work with three representative lake communities to understand the best pathways for translating science-based research into the various decision-making processes used by lake community partners, supporting the adoption of scientific evidence to meet conservation goals.
Funding
Partner Organization(s)
Project Lead
Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory
Supporting Lake Stewardship
Minnesota’s 14,000+ lakes are central to recreation, family traditions and community life. Protecting lake health while keeping recreational access equitable is both an environmental and social priority.
One contentious issue for lake communities is agreeing on where and how large power boats – specifically wakesurfing boats – can operate. Both social and ecological challenges arise, as wake boats in wakesurfing mode can disrupt other types of lake recreation and damage lake bottoms and shorelines, potentially undoing years of lake stewardship gains. Lake associations and decision-makers are under growing pressure to set policies and create educational materials to address these issues.
This project team aims to address these types of lake management challenges by identifying the barriers that are preventing lake managers from implementing recommended practices. The project will test and evaluate decision support strategies designed to overcome these barriers and increase adoption.
The ultimate question they seek to answer is: What types of research-to-implementation models will lead to the greatest adoption of science-based decisions to protect lake ecosystems?
Project Goals
- Select three lake communities for the study and engage lake community partners in a participatory set of research activities to identify and assess forms of guidance, best practices, standards or tools lake community partners will adopt
- Produce a guide outlining strategies learned during the pilot-scale collaborative process, providing a transferable model for decentralized but coordinated efforts to protect lakes and safeguard recreational boating
- Develop visual tools and resources making recommendations accessible to lake community partners
- Produce a preliminary impact evaluation report, tracking adoption of guidance, behavioral intention and procedural changes at pilot lakes, and documenting barriers and successes
- Provide basis for future proposals expanding the program to more lake communities in Minnesota and beyond
Meet the Project Team
Project Lead
Additional Team Members
Project Status
Last Updated
Aug 10, 2026
Impact Location
Minnesota
Start Date
Expected Completion
Jun 30, 2028