Indiana Department of Natural Resources has rescinded the order restricting motorized watercraft use on Tippecanoe Lake, Oswego, and James Lake, Big Barbee Lake, Little Barbee Lake, Irish Lake, Kuhn Lake, Sechcrist Lake, and Winona Lake.

The unusually high water levels in Kosciusko County have receded, allowing the order to be lifted. The order was issued March 27.

Indiana Department of Natural Resources has awarded funding totaling $1.33 million to 36 projects, including several in Kosciusko County, to protect and restore Indiana lakes.

Funds come from the Lake and River Enhancement program in the DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife and will be used on 46 different lakes around the state.

"This is one state program that returns money to taxpayers on a local level, where they can see their money at work and reap the direct benefits," said Robert E. Carter Jr., director of the DNR. "Governor Daniels expects all agencies to use taxpayer funds wisely and LARE-funded projects serve as an investment with associated ecological, recreational and economic benefits from protecting one of Indiana's most valuable assets - our lakes and rivers."

Funding comes from the LARE fee paid by boat owners based on the value of each boat, with one-third of the money slated for use by the DNR for lake projects that remove sediment or control exotic or invasive plants or animals. The remainder is split between traditional LARE projects that seek to reduce sediment and nutrient inputs to waterbodies and the DNR's Division of Law Enforcement for boating-related programs.

In 2009, the program received applications for invasive plant management projects totaling more than $2 million and was able to provide $568,040 in grants to survey and treat exotic invasive plants in 40 lakes. No funding could be awarded for lakes that requested a state grant. For the second year in a row, no new plans were funded in order to complete treatment cycles for lakes already in the program.

The other type of grant, for sediment removal, provides recreational and economic benefits to both users and residents of the affected lakes. A total of $339,989 will be distributed in three counties to six sediment removal projects involving nine Indiana lakes.

Below are grants affecting Kosciusko County lakes:

Aquatic Plant Management Projects 2009-10
Barbee Lakes, $32,780, plan update and implementation
Dewart Lake, $20,025, plan update and implementation
Hill Lake, $13,050, plan revision and implementation
Ridinger Lake, $8,100, plan revision and implementation
Silver and North Little lakes, $13,455, plan revision and implementation
Syracuse Lake, $18,360, plan revision and implementation
Tippecanoe, Oswego and James lakes, $29,000, plan revision and implementation
Wawasee Lake, $27,000, plan revision and implementation
Webster and Backwater lakes, $25,400, plan revision and implementation
Sediment Removal Projects 2009-10
Big Barbee and Kuhn lakes, $145,000, sediment removal
Center Lake, $75,000, sediment removal
Ridinger Lake, $79,489, sediment removal