Watershed
Watershed management is an integral component of the Spring Lake improvement program.
A watershed (or drainage basin) is the land area that drains to the lake. The Spring Lake watershed is about 32,000 acres, a land area over 29 times the size of the lake. The watershed drains lands in both Ottawa and Muskegon Counties and includes all or part of 11 municipalities. Most of the land near the lake is highly urbanized and developed while the upper watershed remains largely undeveloped. The long convoluted shoreline of Spring Lake allows substantial residential development to occur around the lake. Currently, about 1,300 homes and businesses border the lake.
In 2025, a Technical Committee was formed to address watershed management in the Spring Lake watershed. The Technical Committee recommended to the lake board that the 2001 Spring Lake Watershed Management Plan be updated to make it eligible for grant funding opportunities. As part of this effort, the lake board moved to pursue a watershed management planning grant to partially fund these efforts and has directed the Ottawa Conservation District to apply for a grant in the fall of 2025.
10 Ways to Help Protect Spring Lake
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Don’t use lawn fertilizer that contains phosphorus—it's the law!
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Use the minimum amount of fertilizer recommended on the label — more is not necessarily better!
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Water the lawn sparingly to avoid washing nutrients and sediments into the lake.
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Don’t feed ducks and geese near the lake. Waterfowl droppings are high in nutrients and may cause swimmer’s itch.
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Don’t burn leaves and grass clippings near the shoreline. Nutrients concentrate in the ash and can easily wash into the lake.
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Don’t mow to the water’s edge. Instead, allow a strip of natural vegetation (i.e., a greenbelt) to become established along your waterfront. A greenbelt will trap pollutants and discourage nuisance geese from frequenting your property.
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Where possible, promote infiltration of stormwater into the ground. Build a rain garden to capture runoff from driveways and downspouts.
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Don’t dump anything in area wetlands. Wetlands are natural purifiers.
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If you have a septic system, have your septic tank pumped every 2 to 3 years.
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Don’t be complacent — your collective actions will make or break the lake!
Caring for Your Shoreland
The take-home message here is straightforward: Maintain or restore as much natural shoreland as possible. That is not to say that you can’t—or shouldn’t—have an area to swim, moor boats, fish or lounge by the shore. However, manicured lawn to the water’s edge and boundless seawalls are not conducive to a healthy lake. Natural shorelines are easier to maintain and provide many ecological benefits.