1. Pump out your septic tank every three to five years, or whenever the sludge level exceeds one-third of the tank capacity.

2. Maintain your septic system properly. Be sure your system is designed to handle the load it receives. A leach field should be increased in size whenever the frequency (seasonal to year-round) or volume (additional people, washing machines, etc.) of use increases.

3. Check your leach field for soft or wet areas or septic smells. Replace faulty systems.

4. Do not bathe, shampoo, or wash boats, pets or other objects in the lake with soap or phosphorus-containing detergents. Do not wash cars near the lake where the detergent can run into the water.

5. Use low or non-phosphate detergents.

6. Maintain a buffer zone of natural vegetation along the shore to contain erosion and assimilate nutrients before they reach the lake.

7. Do not use fertilizer near the lake shore. It's better to have shore fronts with natural vegetation rather than green, manicured lawns.

8. Do not burn brush or leaves near the shore; the nutrients remain behind to be washed into the lake during the first rain. Do not dump leaves or grass clippings in or near the lake. They also add nutrients to the water.

9. Do not feed ducks or other aquatic organisms; there is plenty of natural food available. Nutrients in the feed material, which is produced outside the lake's watershed, will be added to the lake through the organism's feces.