Help Oakland County Monitor Lake Water Quality this Summer

We’re deep in the throes of winter, but we can certainly dream about summer! When your county is home to over 100 lakes, there’s nothing that compares to a Michigan summer on the water. We all want to keep Oakland County lakes clean for swimmers, boaters, water skiers, fish, and wildlife and you can help by volunteering for the Cooperative Lakes Monitoring Program (CLMP). The CLMP, which is working in partnership with the Oakland County Board of CommissionersOakland County Health Division, and Michigan Clean Water Corps (MiCorps), needs volunteers like you to help monitor and protect the health of our beautiful local lakes.

“We are excited to partner with the Cooperative Lakes Monitoring Program to provide residents with valuable resources to monitor the health of our lakes,” said Board Chairman Michael J. Gingell. “Together we can help preserve and protect hundreds of lakes across Oakland County for generations to come.” Continue reading

Roadside Wildflowers of July

WILDER SIDE OF OAKLAND COUNTY

They are wild and free. They choose where to grow. They need no care from us, just a bit of respect to survive. Some are native species, others invasive or naturalized, but the wildflowers of our July roadsides share common traits. They thrive in disturbed soils and open areas and add colorful beauty to the road’s edge. They are the vanguard forces of nature trying to make things right!

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Butterfly Weed: The brilliant orange blossom of Butterfly Weed is unmistakable for appreciative humans, and nectar sipping butterflies. It’s next to impossible to hike in an uncut meadow or prairie without encountering the most stunning member of the milkweed family. The meadows and roadside of Highland State Recreation Area, and the roadside edge of Independence Oaks County Park-North are just two locations where they are now at peak bloom.

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