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RESPONSE: We believe the City of Orono is seriously <br />overstating the case. We have firm evidence that such events <br />occur on this I'e. The Hennepin Sheriff's Water Patrol does not <br />accept Orono's contention that the lake is unsafe. Indeed, it <br />issued a challenge at our December 2, 1989 meeting for anyone or <br />any organization to come forward with data that demonstrates that <br />the public is not safe on Lake Minnetonka during peak hours. To <br />our knowledge, no one has taken up the Sheriff's challenge. <br />We request that the City of Orono provide us with the data <br />demonstrating that boaters on the lake are unsafe. That data <br />does not appear in our Management Program or supporting <br />documents. <br />(j Page 1, paragraph 2, e. The numerical majority of the bays are <br />already drastically overused (Tables 6 and 8). <br />RESPONSE: Tables 6 and 8 do not demonstrate that the bays <br />are drastically overused. They simply report what the average <br />acres per boat is by bay. "Drastically overused" is a judgement <br />that cannot be supported by fact. The issue of crowding and <br />displacement is simply too complex to review in this response. <br />It is unfortunate that the City of Orono did no better <br />participate in the Management Program process. If it had, we <br />believe that it would be in agreement with our Management <br />Program. <br />Page 1, paragraph 2, f. "That there are indicators sailing may <br />be being crowded off the lake, etc;" <br />RESPONSE: If emphasis is on "may be", then we concur. The <br />data are not conclusive and future monitoring is needed. (See <br />Implementation Plan for a discussion of the monitoring program.) <br />Page 2, paragraph 2, g. "Some boats are more environmentally <br />harmful than others - e.g. large power boats vs. sailfish; yet <br />the LMCD plan does not consider the environmental effect of these <br />conditions or establish a standard for density or even consider <br />the possible necessity for numerical limitations on particular <br />types of boats." <br />RESPONSE: The Management Program does not attempt to limit <br />the types of boats that use the lake. All alternatives were <br />considered, and these were specifically rejected by the <br />subcommittees involved. <br />We Know of no evidence that large power boats, when operated <br />correctly, create a significantly greater amount of environmental <br />impact. If Orono has such evidence, we would appreciate copies.