Issues of the Day

Floor Speech

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Mr. BAIRD. Madam Speaker, I appreciate my good friend from Texas allowing me to share with this body the program that I have for today.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to call attention to the overwhelming challenges plaguing a community in my district. It is located in White and Carroll Counties of west central Indiana. The communities surrounding Lakes Shafer and Freeman are a recreation destination for Hoosiers from all across the State and from Americans across the country.

The Twin Lakes, as they are known, straddle the small community of Monticello. In the nearly 100 years since the two reservoirs were created by damming up the Tippecanoe River, their far-reaching attraction has created a flourishing local economy built on tourism, replete with the trappings of a family vacation, including its own amusement park, cruise boat, resort, marina, and much more.

Despite all the buildup of amenities of this Hoosier destination, the lakes remained the focal point of the community and the driving force of the regional economy. Unfortunately, lake conditions can also have a negative impact on the local area.

At the hands of Mother Nature and outside forces, these crown jewels of the region have been tarnished. On multiple occasions, Lake Freeman, because of drought conditions, has been drained to the riverbed that flows at the bottom.

Unfortunately, these episodes of diminishing lake levels have come at an increasingly frequent rate in recent years and in times of even moderate drought conditions. These droughts caused the lake to become almost completely drained and resulted in devastation to the natural ecology and the local economy.

Businesses, homes, property--both real and personal--tax revenue, and the loss of family time are all impacted. The past 7 months have been one of those times as drought conditions last summer once again caused Lake Freeman's water level to plummet by more than 13 feet, completely draining the vast majority of this 1500-acre reservoir.

One victim of this devastation is the disruption of local ecological balance. During the worst parts of the episode, area residents walked the lake bed only to find dead turtles, fish, mussels, and more that had succumbed to the lack of water.

Safety also became a tremendous challenge for locals and boaters as water levels sank, exposing stumps, sharp objects, and other items usually covered by the water.

These impacts on the lake quality are especially disappointing to a community that has prided itself in its conservation stewardship of the lake. Members of the community have banded together to form Shafer & Freeman Lakes Environmental Conservation Corporation, also known as SFLECC.

This volunteer group raises thousands of dollars every year to fund the Summer Lakes Clean Up project. Over the years, this group has volunteered over 17,000 hours in helping preserve the beauty and natural environment of the lakes.

Residents are facing tremendous economic costs as well. Property values have plunged; local drinking water and drinking wells have dried up; retaining walls have buckled, threatening to collapse; and boats are stranded and unable to be winterized.

The financial costs to solve these issues are too high for many residents. Even if they wanted to move, the values of their homes have dropped considerably. One resident who moved to Lake Freeman after she retired said: ``We built a retirement home 10 years ago. It is probably not worth half of what we have in it. It is very depressing.''

Another resident told our office about the difficulties they have faced after their water well dried up. In order to use any water, they have to drive miles away to purchase their water from a grocery store.

Small businesses are facing the same tough financial decisions. The Madam Carroll, a cruise boat and entertainment venue, struggled significantly to keep their business above water, literally. Because of the dried-up lake, the owners of the vessel had to dock their boat that usually sails year-round. ``It is almost as bad as it can get,'' Chris Peters, co-owner of the Madam Carroll, told me.

Tall Timbers, a marina that helps prepare and store boats for the winter, saw a dramatic drop in their business. In an average year, they process and winterize around 500 boats but were only able to house around 200 boats this year due to them being unable to access the customers' boats.

Susan Wagner, who owns the convenience store and gas station on the shores of the lake, described the situation as bleak. She had to let her employees go earlier than usual because of the lack of business.

I am proud of the resiliency that the Hoosiers of this magnificent community have shown. They have exhausted many options to find a solution to this constant problem.

While I am disappointed and saddened for these Hoosiers because of the difficulty that these conditions have created, I am happy to report that conditions have finally been restored to normal just recently because of the rains after more than 7 long months of this kind of condition.

I want the Hoosiers in my district and all those impacted by Lake Freeman's challenges to know that I hear their concerns, that I am here on their behalf, and that I will do everything I can to remedy this problem.

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