Board mulls over options to keep Oliver Rec Area clean

The snow storm in March, that gave Kimball an estimated sixteen inches of snow, also produced a water runoff once the snow melted. This runoff, while it caused some flooding, also filled Oliver Lake. With spring wrapping up and summer around the corner, Oliver Lake is a great place for locals and visitors alike to spend their summer days.

Oliver Lake is 270 acres and sits on 917 acres of land. The grounds include camping grounds, boat ramps and docks, a swimming beach, changing houses, 130 picnic tables, two picnic shelters with electricity, 142 charcoal cooking grills, 75 camping pads and 100 non-pads without electricity. The hiking, fishing, and hunting area is on the south side of the lake, while the north side of the lake offers areas for boating and swimming.

Due to Oliver Lake offering such a wide range of recreational activities, people from near and far visit throughout the spring and summer. Don Ogle, the information and education coordinator for the South Platte Natural Resources District (NRD), believes that with the water the lake will attract several people for recreational activities. As a result, work has been done on the area in preparation for larger crowds.

"Extra docks have been put in and the older ones fixed up. The buoys have been pulled across so that the swimming area is separate from the boating area. The roads leading out there were really muddy and terrible so Pine Bluffs Sand and Gravel donated a ton of time and tons of sand and gravel out there to help fix the roads. They donated grader time and a bunch of that other stuff," Ogle said.

With the roads fixed and the water levels high, it is expected that the lake see a lot of traffic from people from all over. Now this could potentially present an issue. With the lake no longer housing dumpsters on the grounds and the new system for trash removal being that people simply pick up after themselves, there could be a build up of trash.

"It's not bad out there right now. I know there have been some groups out there to pick up trash, or they are planning to. I know Keep Kimball Beautiful usually tries to get out there for trash pick up. I was out there not too long ago, and it didn't look trashy. We're really asking people to police themselves when it comes to trash pick up," Ogle said.

With Oliver Lake recently being the destination for many Memorial Day celebrations, the holiday weekend provided a sort of test for the current system in place. With people coming in with food and drinks, many were watching in anticipation to see if the "pack it out" method of trash removal would work. Galen Wittrock, NRD assistant manager, expressed a positive attitude when it comes to relying on lake visitors to pick up their own trash.

"Memorial weekend was our first test and remarkably, I was up there just yesterday (May 28), and I couldn't even fill up half a bag. We do have a couple employees up there now whose responsibilities involve going around and picking up trash," Wittrock said.

Although Wittrock and the Oliver Reservoir Advisory Board have faith that people will pick up their trash themselves, there have been concerns from many of the local residents about whether moving the dumpsters off the property was a good idea. Some feel that most people will not pick up after themselves and that Oliver Lake will begin to resemble a dump.

"When we moved the dumpsters off the property and into the maintenance yard, a lot of people called and had concerns. Now, when we took over management of the lake we formed a advisory committee. As far as the NRD, our board of directors wants a local input as far as what's best for Oliver. The group decided that the 'Pack It In, Pack It Out' concept is worth trying out. So we decided it wouldn't hurt and so we removed the dumpsters and put up signage, 'Respect the lake, pick up trash.' Trying to encourage to pick up their own trash," Wittrock said.

While the current rules out at the lake dictate that lake visitors be responsible for picking up their own trash it's not entirely set in stone. Yes, as for now those are the rules implemented, however, Wittrock said he understood the possibility of the system not working.

"Especially after Memorial Day weekend, it's looking as good as it did. Right now, it's permanent, however, that's not to say that it will never change if it needs to. However, the advisory committee did really think that this would be a good system to have. So far no changes seem to be needed," Wittrock said.

With the small trash being under control, the NRD has taken an interest in larger pieces of trash that seem to be finding their way onto the Oliver Lake property.

"We do have some trouble occasionally with larger trash getting dumped on the grounds and that's what we were asking the city for help with. We hope that they can maybe waive the landfill fees for us or help us out so that we aren't paying for the trash that people dump, because they don't want to go to the landfill," Wittrock said.

The NRD and the advisory committee ultimately want to see people enjoying their time out at the lake. Ogle wanted to remind people of certain regulations to be mindful of when visiting the lake.

"One thing we want to stress is there are no fireworks allowed out there. Alcohol is permitted, but they cannot have any individual containers larger than a gallon," Ogle said

Camping is allowed on the grounds for up to 14 consecutive days, after that they must move. Dogs should be leashed unless being trained for hunting on the south side of the lake. It is also important that people use the roads and refrain from driving off road across the grass. If visitors comply with these rules, it will prevent certain upkeep and safety issues from occurring. Since it has been a while since the lake has seen this much water, the NRD and Oliver Reservoir Advisory Committee just hope that people will take pride in what they have.