YELLOW BAY - Over thousands of years, Flathead Lake has been one of the cleanest, if not the cleanest, lakes in the world. For more than 50 years, the Flathead Lakers have been making sure that stays true, despite a major population base surrounding the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River.

The dedication and hard work of the Lakers was celebrated at their 52nd annual meeting last Thursday night as more than 200 people showed up to enjoy music, food, drinks and, of course, the lake itself. An appearance by Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer capped off a special evening at the University of Montana's Flathead Lake Biological Station on Yellow Bay that included a "State of the Lake" address by Dr. Jack Stanford.

Schweitzer accepted the 2010 Stewardship Award, an honor bestowed annually by the Lakers to someone who "has made a significant contribution to preserving the quality and beauty of Flathead Lake." This year, Schweitzer shared the honor with British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell, who was invited but could not attend. The Lakers chose to honor the two for their cooperation on an agreement signed in February banning coal mining and exploration in the upper Flathead Valley on both sides of the border. If the mining had gone forward, residual effects would have made their way downstream to the Flathead Lake and below, essentially polluting the entire watershed.

"It's our heartfelt thanks for what you've done, Governor, and we greatly appreciate it," Lakers' president Larry Ashcraft said. Continuing, Ashcraft said the agreement is instrumental in "protecting Flathead waters from impacts of coal development, resolving one of the longest transboundary water disputes along the Canadian-U.S. boundary, and ensuring that our iconic wildlife continue to roam, clean waters continue to flow, and our special Flathead landscapes and way of life are sustained."

Met by a loud round of applause and the presentation of a framed aerial photograph of the Flathead watershed, Schweitzer claimed to have been a "very, very small part of this."

"It wasn't me who got this done, it's you all that got this done," Schweitzer said.

He also deferred to Campbell, who went against his main political base, loggers and miners, to make sure the waterways will be clean for generations to come. The potential revenue for mining in the area exceeded $7 billion, Schweitzer said, but Campbell ignored the political implications in order to help British Columbia's southern neighbor. In addition, Schweitzer said he walked away from negotiations with B.C. three times before deciding to give it one last shot, when he and the Premier were able to agree on the specifics of the agreement.

Though the Premier could not attend, Ashcraft read from a letter sent by Naomi Yamamoto, B.C. Minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations.

"We are deeply honored to be named as a recipient of this award and to share this honor with Governor Schweitzer," the letter read. "B.C. and Montana are fortunate to have some of the most beautiful, pristine land on the planet. We are blessed with a land that deserves preservation, and we have a responsibility to protect it."

Other state officials like Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester and Congressman Denny Rehberg sent representatives from their respective offices to voice support and congratulate the recipients for their hard work.

Baucus' letter mentioned how he has worked on this issue with Dr. Stanford and Ric Hauer, a professor at the Yellow Bay station, and has fought Flathead mining for 30 years. He said he had met with U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to keep the issue "on the front burner."

"One hundred eight thousands acres of the North Fork have been relinquished at no cost to the taxpayer," Baucus' letter read.

Many in attendance came to hear Dr. Stanford's annual State of the Lake address, a presentation he's given for several years since becoming director of the station in 1980. While the general message and quality of the lake water was similar to last year, Stanford addressed issues in groundwater pollution and aquatic invasive species. Of some concern is the presence of imidacloprid, the primary ingredient in a popular insecticide used to kill fruit flies, in wells and springs along the East Shore of the lake. Popular among cherry growers because of its effectiveness, Stanford said the levels in water aren't high enough to harm humans but that alternatives are being sought to prevent the chemicals use.

Bigger concerns at this point, Stanford said, may be the emergence of zebra and quagga mussels as potential threats to the delicate ecosystem of the lake. Once in the waterways, the mussels can be extremely difficult, and expensive, to fully eradicate, Stanford said. Sightings of live mussels have been reported in Wyoming and much of the eastern United States has reported infestations.

"This is not some faraway threat, it's right on our doorstep," he said of the invasive species. "They can be so abundant they absolutely coat the bottom of the lake."

Prevention measures have been taken, but future legislative sessions could see a push for mandatory checkpoints of watercraft and inspection stickers for clean boats.

After his presentation, Stanford took questions from the audience members. One man asked about a company's proposal to salvage old logs from the bottom of the lake bed near Somers. Stanford admitted he doesn't know too much about the issue, but that it seems to have positive and negative aspects. The turbidity created could cause problems, he said, but the limited area of search and salvage could minimize potential impacts. The state has not decided yet whether to grant the company a land-use permit to begin the project.

The Lakers' have an office in Polson and maintain 13 officers and directors, as well as a staff of four. To learn more about the Lakers, visit www.flatheadlakers.org or call 406-883-1346.