Renewing Our Waters: Renewing Our Promise:

65th Annual MLSA Conference

Friday, May 1 & Saturday, May 2, 2026

Registration is open until 4/20 – Register Here!

MiCorps CLMP Training will be available

Hotel Room Block is closed – Hotel Link
Visit Muskegon landing page

Conference Agenda – View Final Program Document

(MiCorps CLMP training happens during the conference – here is the training agenda)

Friday

8 am Breakfast in Section B/C

Welcome and introduction by Melissa DeSimone
9 am Keynote: Richard Phillips— President, Last Wilderness Alliance
Wake Surfing Regulation– the Experience in Wisconsin and Suggestions for Michigan

10:30 am Breakouts:

• Section A-1: Aquatic Plants
  • Understanding Aquatic Plants in Michigan’s Inland Lakes: Insights from Point-Intercept Surveys Across 100+ Lakes – Jeremy A Hartsock, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University
  • Water-primrose (Ludwigia sp.):  A New Aquatic Invader in Michigan – Billy Keiper, Aquatic Biologist, EGLE Water Resources Division
• Section A-2: Further Discussion with Keynote Speaker – Richard Phillips and Carol Phillips
• Section A-3: Harmful Algal Blooms on Higgins and Black Lakes – Mark Kieser, Kieser& Associates and Mark Luttenton, Annis Water Resources Institute, GVSU

Noon – Lunch in Section B/C

1 pm Breakouts:

• Section A-1: Invasive Species
  • Preventing the Spread of Invasive Crayfish in Michigan – Kathleen Quebedeaux, Fisheries Biologist, MDNR
  • Sea Lamprey Update – Nicole Lexson, Sea Lamprey Control Infrastructure Specialist, Great Lakes Fishery Commission
  • Zebra and Quagga Mussels – Ashley Elgin, Research Benthic Ecologist, NOAA
• Section A-2: Shoreline Education Initiatives
  • Block the Flock: How Shoreline Gardens Keep Geese at Bay – Noah Jansen, Restoration Manager, Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council
  • Reimagining natural shorelines through art – Developing arts-based outreach and engagement for shoreline landowners – Ben Eiler, Master’s Student, Fisheries and Wildlife, MSU and Jade Sun, Undergraduate Research Assistant, MSU
• Section A-3: Working with University Partners – Charlyn Partridge, Principal Investigator, Partridge Lab, AWRI-GVSU, Al Steinman, Allen and Helen Hunting Research Professor, AWRI-GVSU, Jeremy A Hartsock, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, and Dr. Erin Dreelin, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, MSU

3 pm Breakouts:

• Section A-1: Local Government Session
  • Zoning 101: How to Stay Engaged in Local Decision Making – Abbie Hawley, Director of Community and Government Relations, Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council
  • Holding the Line: How Conservation Districts, Part 91, & Local Planning Protect Michigan’s Waters – Veronnica Kenreich, Soil and Erosion Control, Cass County
• Section A-2: ANPs (Artificial Nesting Platforms) and Loon Habitat – John Yadro, Wisconsin Loon Ranger
• Section A-3: Waterfront Landscaping
  • Trees and plants for people and wildlife from top to bottom – Julia Kirkwood, Nonpoint Source Program, Michigan EGLE
  • Your Natural, Edible Yard: Un-Lawning for Watershed and Human Health – Sally Wenczel, Environmental Author, Illustrator, and Community Educator

5 pm Happy Hour – Scholarship and Riparian of the Year awards presented by Melissa DeSimone
6 pm Dinner
7 pm Riparian Rights Q&A Session, Ask Anything: Cliff Bloom

Saturday

7:30 am – Breakfast Served in Section B/C
7:45 am Breakfast with Cliff Bloom – Update on Riparian Rights Issues

9 am Breakouts:

• Section A-1: MI Shoreland Stewards Program – Spread the Message! – Julia Kirkwood, Michigan EGLE
• Section A-2: Internal Phosphorus Loading in Michigan Lakes: Drivers, Dynamics, and Management Strategies – Joe Bischoff, Senior Limnologist, Barr Engineering Co. and Kate Lucas, Water Quality Scientist, Barr Engineering Co.
• Section A-3: Play the Watershed Game and learn to reduce nutrient inputs that can cause harmful algal blooms – Erica Anculle, Extension Educator, Michigan Sea Grant
• Section D: Aquatic Plant Identification Workshop – Jo Latimore and Erick Elgin, MiCorps CLMP and MSU Center for Lakes and Streams

11 am Panel Discussion in Section B/C – The Shifting Sands of Water Policy – State and Federal Considerations
David Lossing, Government Relations, Huron River Watershed Council
Megan Tinsley, Water Policy Director, Michigan Environmental Council
Carrie La Seur, La Seur Law Firm, PLLC

12:30 pm – Lunch

1:30 pm Breakouts:

• Field Trip on Muskegon Lake
• Section A-1: Challenges for Common Loons in Michigan: Human Disturbance, Climate Change, and Contaminant Exposure – Scott C. Hedberg, President, Michigan Loon Preservation Association
• Section A-2: Current Research
  • Restoring the bed, reshaping the web: Biodiversity and energy dynamics following experimental sand removal in a Lake Superior tributary – Connor Ford, MS Student, Biology Department, Michigan Tech
  • West Michigan Inland Lake Salt Survey – Mike Hassett, Scientific Technician, GVSU Annis Water Resources Institute
  • From Strains to Strategies: Integrating Genetics and Herbicide Response in Aquatic Plant Management – Ashley Wolfe, Research Professional, Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology, Montana State University and Ryan Thum, Department Head, Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology, Montana State University
• Section A-3: State regulations and best practices for construction-based projects on Michigan’s inland lakes – Eric Calabro, Inland Lakes Policy Specialist, EGLE

Nonprofit Exhibitors

Exhibitor information available here

Annis Water Resources Institute