Week of April 20, 2009

Updated 4/23
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Invasive Species Workshop at ALLEGANY STATE PARK - Thursday May 7th

From New York Outdoors Blog

Forests, streams, lakes and fields are being degraded or irreparably damaged by alien invasive species. The cost to eliminate or mitigate the effects from these species will be vastly higher the longer we wait. The economic damage suffered by other parts of the country will happen here unless we are vigilant now. Emerald Ash Borer is confirmed just south of Cattaraugus County; Asian Long-Horned beetles have been found in the Long Island Region; Mile-a-Minute Vine and Giant Hogweed are in Cattaraugus County.

Learn how to properly identify the invasive species and then what to do in response to help eradicate the problem. This workshop will be covering everything from Rock Snot to Emerald Ash Borer; Mile-a-Minute to Hogweed. The three main topics at the workshop are aquatics, plants and insects.

We are unable to provide lunch so please bring one with you. Just a reminder that the closest restaurant or store is approximately a 10 minute drive.

Please pre-register by May 1 by calling Cassie Wright at (716) 354-9101 ext 236 or email cassie.wright@oprhp.state.ny.us.

Space will be limited so make sure you register early.

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Ash-killing insect threatening bats' future

Emerald ash borer nearing Louisville Slugger's harvest area

By Bobbie Dittmeier, MLB.com

An Asian insect that has been destroying ash trees from the Midwest to Maryland poses a threat to the future of ash bats used by many Major Leaguers, according to a report in the April edition of Men's Journal.

The emerald ash borer, a bug about the size of a small paper clip, was first discovered in Michigan in 2002 and has ravaged forests from there to Ohio, Indiana and Maryland, killing tens of millions of white ash trees, according to the report.

Louisville Slugger, which produces the official bats for Major League Baseball, harvests its ash from an area along the border of Pennsylvania and New York that has remained uninfected, but the ash borers have migrated to within 100 miles of that site.

"We've been harvesting wood for over 100 years," Louisville Slugger vice president Rick Redman said. "We've survived floods, fires, a lot of other issues. Now we're trying to survive insects."

The beetle is native to China and eastern Asia and is believed to have arrived in North America in wood packing materials commonly used to ship consumer goods, according to the Louisville Slugger's web site.

There is little chance of halting its progression, said Nature Conservancy spokesman Frank Lowenstein.

"Non-native pests harm our trees in ways native insects do not," Lowenstein said. "Trees have no resistance, and predators don't feed on them, meaning they cannot be wiped out. ... Of 16 species of ash in North America, we're looking at the loss of all 16. Anywhere in the country you are looking at an ash tree, those will be gone," possibly within 30 years.

The bat-maker says on its Web site that it could import ash from China, or use other woods to make bats. Maple, for example, became popular among players during the past decade, but its tendency to break into shards led MLB and the players association to institute safety measures beginning this season.

"Louisville Slugger is confident that it will find alternative sources of timber for MLB bats in the event the worst-case scenario would become reality," the company said on its site. "Our company is always looking at other species of wood for potentially making baseball bats."

But ash has long been a highly popular choice.

"Ash is perfect for making bats," Redman said. "It's a hard wood with good grain structure, so when it breaks it doesn't explode, it just cracks. Players who migrated to maple are coming back to ash."

To try to quarantine the insect, the Department of Agriculture has urged people to burn firewood only near its origin and not to transport it to other locations.

Link

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Finger Lakes PRISM meeting

The next Finger Lakes PRISM meeting will be on May 7th, from 10 – 1 pm at the Montezuma Audubon Center. It has been a while since we last met so there is much to discuss. If you have agenda items or topics please forward them to me.

Cheers,

Gregg Sargis

Program Stewardship Ecologist
The Nature Conservancy, Central & Western NY Chapter

gsargis[at]tnc.org

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Rhode Island pet shop dreads 'Invasive Species' bill

By Beth Hurd, Johnston Sun Rise

For more than 28 years, the Parisella family of Johnston, Rhode Island, has been selling such exotic animals as birds, degus, chinchillas and hedgehogs, reptiles such as snakes, lizards, frogs and turtles, plus tropical fish at their store, Pure Paradise Pets, located on Putnam Pike.

But if legislation now under consideration is passed, the store may no longer be carrying any non-native species. Storeowner Domenic Parisella, who runs the store with his parents Domenic Sr. and Arlene Parisella, is trying to get the word out, asking pet owners to contact their state representatives.

As it reads now, the legislation (HR 669) requires the government to assess all imported species to determine which “will cause or are likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to other animal species’ health or human health.” It says pet owners would also be breaking the law by purchasing or owning non-native species prohibited as a result of the review process.

The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council is strongly opposing the bill and has published literature urging people to lobby against the legislation.

“On April 23, 2009, the House Natural Resources Committee of the United States Congress will hold a hearing on a resolution that, if passed, will ban the import, export, transport, breeding, and private ownership of virtually every bird, mammal, reptile, and fish species currently kept as pets,” reads the literature in part.

Called the “Non-native Wildlife Invasion Prevention Act," the bill (according to the literature) is being supported by the Humane Society of the United States and The Nature Conservancy.

“These people are extremists to the max – they want to try to ban everything, but they hope to get half of what they want,” said Domenic. “They really want to outlaw the pythons, because of the python problem in the Everglades in Florida. [But] they’re going after all non-native species, sold in pet stores and bred by pet owners; if you have a pair of hamsters and they breed, if this passes, you just broke the law.”

Link

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Virginia statewide battle against invading species to take place May 2

NewsLeader.com

BLACKSBURG, Virginia — Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Native Plant Society, and Virginia Master Naturalists, a program with which Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources partners, announced the first statewide Invasive Plant Removal Day. The program will take place at locations all over the state May 2.

Details for the event can be found at www.virginiamasternaturalist.org/invasives/index.html. Residents are encouraged to participate and at this site can find events in their own city they can sign up for; contact information for each city also is included.

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Will Renovate be safe for Cazenovia Lake, NY?

By Doug Campbell, Cnylink.com

If the town’s application is approved, the herbicide triclopyr (trade name Renovate) will be used to aggressively stop the growth of Eurasian water milfoil in Cazenovia Lake. But some have voiced concerns: Is this chemical safe? Is this the best option?

According an intermunicipal council of town, village, and lake association officials, the answer to both questions is yes.

The EPA classifies Renovate as “practically non-toxic,” the lowest possible toxicity classification for an herbicide. This rating comes after over 20 years of testing.

“It’s a very rigorous process,” said Town of Cazenovia Supervisor Liz Moran. “All those tests have to be done using very specific protocols and laboratories that are certified and audited.”

According to a document on the town’s website, the EPA requires pesticide registrants to submit more than 100 different scientific studies and tests.

The document states that strict testing standards must be maintained by the EPA. This “helps ensure quality results in the way data is conducted, recorded and documented with appropriate quality control. These studies can also be audited by the EPA at any time to ensure data was generated and documented to support the results obtained.”

Triclopyr affects the growth of dicots, or broad-leaf plants. Of the plants most common in Cazenovia Lake, a minority are dicots. Of those dicots, one species besides Eurasian water milfoil, water marigold, is highly susceptible to the herbicide.

“The water marigold is distributed throughout the lake, so I think it will recolonize itself,” Moran said.

At several town and watershed council meetings, officials have said that native plants will grow to fill the niche vacated by the milfoil. Eurasian water milfoil is currently taking space and resources from native plant life.

The second most abundant dicot in the lake, coontail, has low susceptibility to Renovate.

The particular dilution of Renovate allowed by the EPA (2.5 parts per million) has resulted in no verified cases of toxicity to fish when triclopyr is used, according to the town’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

According to a document on the town’s website addressing submitted questions regarding triclopyr, the herbicide will not be harmful to humans.

“Triclopyr is not considered to be a cause of cancer, birth defects, or genetic mutations. Nor is it considered likely to cause systemic, reproductive, or developmental effects in mammals at or near concentrations encountered during normal human use,” the document states. “However, Washington State Department of Health considers it prudent public health advice to minimize exposure to pesticides regardless of their known toxicity.”

Possible alternatives:

The town of Cazenovia’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement lists several alternatives to herbicide and their reasons for not using them.

No action

If no action is taken, Eurasian watermilfoil will continue to dominate aquatic plantlife and recreational use will become increasingly impaired. This would damage the economy of the town as lake front properties lose value.

Mechanical harvesting

This solution provides a temporary reduction, but can actually spread the species as fragments become new plants in new areas of the lake.

Grass carp

While a sterile form of grass carp can be used to eat aquatic vegetation, this plant-eating fish prefers other native plants to Eurasian watermilfoil. This could result in a reduction in all plants in the lake, not just invasive species.

Suction dredging

This method, while practical for small areas, is slow, labor-intensive and prohibitively expensive for use in the entire lake. This option is still a valid possibility for lakefront property owners.

Benthic barriers

These barriers prevent light from reaching the sediment surface and crush vegetation underneath, preventing and stopping the growth of plant life. This is another method that individual homeowners might employ.

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Hootie and the Parakeets, Round 2

By Corey Kilgannon, New York Times



When last we left Hootie, the battery-powered owl, he was freshly installed atop a high-voltage electrical device on 11th Avenue in Whitestone, Queens, to scare off a group of wild monk parakeets intent on nesting on the device.

Well, Hootie proved no match for the parakeets – who promptly built a nest on the device, a 24,000-volt feeder reclosure.

But despite reports that the fake owl has been fired, Con Edison technicians are giving him another chance, turning to something else known to deter parakeets: the color orange.

“We put an orange cape on Hootie, and now he’s Super Hootie,” said Sam Maratto, a Con Ed technician who is leading his troops in the ongoing battle against the wild parakeets that are colonizing overhead electrical equipment and causing damages and power outages in Whitestone.

An article in The Times on Saturday described how the parakeets kept building their nests on that 11th Avenue feeder reclosure, which kept causing the devices to short-circuit and break. One after another, Con Edison workers kept replacing the $20,000 reclosures and finally bought the plastic owl to serve as a scarecrow last year. It worked for a stretch but after its batteries died, the parakeets were back. Con Edison again replaced the reclosure this month and installed a new owl on it. But by Monday, the parakeets returned and built a new nest on the device, apparently hip to this fake owl’s limited skills — its head swivels slowly and it emits a manufactured hoot, activated by a motion detector.

Photo by Corey Kilgannon/New York Times

Read the full story at Link

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When You’re Invaded,You Need a Response

By Victoria Weber, The Herold of Randolph, Vermont

The first Vermont statewide “Invasive Plants Networking Meeting” was held in Montpelier on April 8. The working session brought together 39 individuals representing state and federal agencies, forestry and conservation associations and citizens, each of which is concerned about the rapid spread of invasive ... Link

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Week of March 1, 2009

Updated 3/5

Open Letter to The Nature Conservancy #1

By Steve Young, invasives volunteer
Arlington County
Posted at http://plantwhacker.blogspot.com

Attacks on invasives efforts are going on at every level from the global and national down to the local, as here in Arlington. I can't find a public announcement directly from The Nature Conservancy (TNC), but email traffic shows that they have made the internal decision to disband their Global Invasive Species Team effort and fire all those folks in a few months. Arg. Here is the letter I have just finished and will post tomorrow.

February 27, 2009

Mark Tercek, President and CEO
The Nature Conservancy
4245 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 100
Arlington, VA 22203-1606

Dear Mr. Tercek:

I have been a member of The Nature Conservancy since 1981. No, certainly I am not one of your biggest donors, but I have been a faithful member and I have believed in TNC’s work and given what I can. For all this time I have been of the impression that the mission of the Conservancy is to conserve nature. Apparently, I am mistaken. Recently I learned that TNC is disbanding its Global Invasive Species Team. I must have missed the survey and the process by which TNC consulted with its members before taking such a step, when invasive species are widely viewed as the second-greatest threat to biodiversity. I will forego the lecture on invasives since the scientific literature is extensive and compelling.

Apparently I also missed some process by which TNC repurposed its mission into something other than what I believed in. As my colleagues in the movement to fight invasive species will attest, the GIST has been an important and effective force in mobilizing efforts all over the world to conserve nature on the ground. I myself have found the GIST web site a highly useful resource for my volunteer work on invasives right here in Arlington, Virginia.

As I exited the Metro station in Ballston every evening and looked at TNC Headquarters across the street, I used to feel pride in TNC and in my membership. Now, I am deeply disappointed. Unless TNC reconsiders its decision and restores its support for all the invasives work, this will be the last year I am a member. I hate to end it after 28 years. But if TNC no longer exists to conserve nature, including fighting the devastating impact of invasives, then it is time for me to move on. I realize that you won’t care about my concerns and my decision as perhaps you would if I were a celebrity or a big-dollar donor, but I hope this letter gives you and your staff some pangs, anyway. Now that I think about it, can I have my money back? I’d like to give it to an organization that is conserving nature. But you can keep the interest.

Sincerely,

Steve Young, Invasives volunteer, Arlington County

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Open Letter to The Nature Conservancy #2

From: ipetrus.blogspot.com

Roger Milliken, Jr., President
Baskahegan Company
Cumberland, Maine

Chairman of the Board
The Nature Conservancy

19 February 2009

Sir:

This is an open letter written to express concern about the decision to end the work of the TNC Global Invasive Species Team. The loss of this team exacerbates the losses of natural areas and their ecosystem services to the arrival and establishment of invasive species. From the negative impacts on regulating services such as clean air and erosion control to services which include habitat protection and enhancement through resource and raw material production to informing services such as recreational use, the work of the team focused efforts to encourage a wide range of disparate stakeholders to find common ground. Quietly without fanfare your team provided a focus nationally for wide ranging efforts to stem the destructive spread of invasive species.

Invasive species are a symptom of a larger challenge, the survivability of our culture and of our current expectation for life on this planet. Currently there are groups who excel at raising awareness of other crises, but invasive species issues have been for so long centrists’ issues of insiders that no one actually notices that there is any urgency. There other major issues brewing which share a similar fate, such as the increase in world population over the rate of food production yields. Boring and seemingly non controversial, with no champions of notoriety in tow, invasive species issues slumber in the cloudy sub consciousness of our public policy attic.

Without champions at a national level, there are no funds. Without vocal demands for extreme action, there are no champions; the issues of invasive species are not glamorous. Scary perhaps, but not enough for the big time celebrities which we need to fire us up as we need the celebrity stamp of approval. Invasive species are a slow fire taking place just below our daily time horizons, too slow to make an impact until too late to stop. We expect as inevitable that kudzu will cost two states 500 million dollars annually, and then we wonder why our states are going broke. But we do nothing, we say nothing, and we learn nothing, because other issues are more important having been identified for us by the chic of the moment, by trend setters of style.

We are engaged in a public policy battle on climate change without understanding that invasive species are linked at the hip to the issue. We speak of carbon negative landscapes without knowing that invasive plants make, in general, wonderful carbon sinks. Complex webs of interactions take too much time to digest, and we have no time because we are in a hurry to get to the next new thing, and therefore wind up paying for the old thing which we failed to understand in the first place. Too hard for us to assess and respond in time; too hard to prove a negative, we build costly prisons after the fact ,just as we allow invasives to establish themselves and then deal with the expense later as if they were always a problem though we knew it cheaper to react early thereby deflecting or avoiding the coming crisis.

Our political systems work by catering to extremes; solutions driven successfully from the consensus center receive no attention and with invasive species it is no different. Successful collaboration with diverse stakeholders has led to complacency and even malaise. We move quietly towards a center, while loading future costs one upon another. 22 million acres of ash trees are dead and gone, and now a few impacted residents of the Midwest wonder why, and more practically how they will afford to cut the dead trees down, as all the while the general warning went unheeded. Some say we cannot predict well enough to protect, and convince us that it is better not to try. This is the mantra that said we could not go to the moon or cure polio and were wrong.

Invasive species are crippling the environment which provides us things we need to live: clean air, soil for food, clean water, medicines, and recreational release to name a few. Invasive species are giant hammer blows of a 900 pound canary singing in a mine, tolling for the future, warning of the change which is coming. Surrounded by so much quiet desperation, we teeter on the edge of inaction unwilling to assume one more crucial issue and so we shunt invasive species to the does-not-matter-compared-to-the-everything-else-we-must-solve arena.

But the failure of our ecosystem infrastructure will be costly whether we acknowledge it or not, and ignoring invasive species will simply pass costs on to repair and maintenance until we can no longer afford to clear our canals of the water hyacinth that can curtail our transportation of goods, or until the citrus greening removes the last orange juice tree. Do we truly believe that hardwood trees, the oaks of North America are not important as a pathogen begins to take them down on the west coast? What price to lose elms and chestnuts and maples and ash and then oaks? What tree do the un-aroused suggest take the place of all that is lost? What price to pay for cooling when the hardwoods are gone?

The homogenization of the world is refreshing at first, for we can go anywhere and find McDonalds knowing that our first meal will taste the same with no surprises. But who will visit Alaska to see salmon runs with no fish, waterways covered by Lythrum, a flower readily visible in the backyards of over 24 states of the lower 48? We want a green English landscape in the desert, but after the initial view did we actually travel to the desert to see Windsor palace or did we come to see the diversity of our planet and to recognize the power of this diversity? Our activities from trade to style encourage the introduction of species much as our city development encourages the introduction of Starbucks. We trade familiarity for uniqueness in order to get efficiency through predictability. We want this sameness because it makes us comfortable. And we are paying a price which so far we are willing to pay.

But the piper will be paid. Our system of systems that regulates life on earth will increase the costs of this homogenization until we cannot pay, much as an evening of over eating and drinking will cause a payment to be rendered of the system so abused. We expect our marketplace providers of goods for consumption to lower costs and encourage them to dismiss or not consider the environmental assessment. We do not place a price on shipping containers coming in without inspection for lack of funding and for time considerations, while we spend billions looking for grenades and bombs. We blithely ignore an unidentified ant, which loves to eat electrical wiring and is headed for Houston Space Flight Center. Rather than paying to deal early and cheaply we will suffer a five minute sound bite of recrimination when we have to move the Space Flight Center, spray it with toxins or encase it in ant proof new buildings or loose its wiring to an invasive species.

Why have a plan when we can couch the inevitable in terms of our inadequacy of knowledge, an endless loop of where is the science. We are still waiting for the complete science behind the loss of the Chesapeake Bay’s oysters when we could have done something we found reasons to delay, and now we find reason to move on as if we have lost nothing off importance. We accept the destruction of our landscapes because we have become landscape illiterate. Isolated in our silos, totally depended on our urban system services, we have forgotten that these same services are built upon the foundation of the ecosystem services whose loss we no longer cry for. We have forgotten the lessons of Aldo Leopold; perhaps we never learned.

This we need an effort such as your GIST. Surely the resources can be found to continue to protect our environment by keeping the Global Invasive Species Team in place.

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Hunters shrink New Jersey's wild boar population

by Brian Murray, The Star-Ledger

They are cunning and ferocious, but the mysterious feral pigs of New Jersey were no match for the state's top predators: hunters.

State wildlife officials report that 56 of the bristly-coated swine -- more than half the estimated population -- were killed in December and January in the first New Jersey feral pig hunt in the wilds of Gloucester County.

The hunt was the second phase of a long-term plan by the state to wipe out the free-ranging hogs known worldwide as the ecological menace Sus scrofa.

"We still don't know how big the population is, but we hope the hunters got most of them," said Lawrence Herrighty of the state Division of Fish and Wildlife, adding, "We are going to attempt to continue shooting and trapping the pigs ourselves." Link

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NYSDEC rep to discuss invasive fish species

The strange and predatory Northern snakehead fish, whose discovery last year in the lower Hudson Valley alarmed environment watchers and anglers, will be the topic of an illustrated lecture by fisheries expert Michael Flaherty on Thursday at the State University College at Oneonta.

"Northern Snakehead Eradication: Sacrifice for the Common Good," will be presented at 4:30 p.m. in Room 211 Science I on the SUNY Oneonta campus. The public is welcome to this free program by the regional fisheries manager for the state Department of Environmental Conservation's Region 3. [Date not provided]

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MA towns to decide on Laurel Lake weed control policy

By Trevor Jones, Berkshire Eagle Staff

LEE, MA — A decision on the use of herbicides for the next three years in Laurel Lake will have to wait until April.

A joint hearing of the Lee and Lenox conservation commissions for a three-phased invasive-weed management plan by the Laurel Lake Preservation Association was continued Monday night, as commission members sought further information on the group's long-term plans and the environmental impact of the herbicide they are seeking to use.

The group's proposal calls for the use of the herbicide Diquat to reduce heavy patches of invasive aquatic plants, continued hand-pulling of weeds and a drawdown of the lake in winter months to freeze and kill weeds along the shore.

The group, which is a private nonprofit organization of local residents and users of the lake, has used hand-pulling to deal with the new species in recent years, but said the time and cost incurred by that technique are unsustainable for the organization.

The need to use herbicides, according to Preservation Association representatives, is the massive increase of Eurasian milfoil, an invasive species that has doubled in acreage since 2002, covering more than 60 acres of the 170-acre lake.

"All we have talked about is the short-term, and we haven't put it in the bigger context of how we solve the problem," said Timothy Flanagan, of the Lenox Conservation Commission.

Flanagan said he would like to see what the group plans to do beyond using the chemical for three years, and to look at the causes of the milfoil, including runoff from roads, farms and septic systems.

Members of each commission said they would like to see the preservation group present a master plan that follows the Department of Environmental Preservation watershed maintenance program.

A number of citizens in attendance raised concerns over the use the herbicides in the lake. Some said they had concerns about the impact to some of the lake's invertebrates, while others said they have swam there for years and don't want to see "poison" in the water.

Marc Bellaud, who presented the proposal on behalf of the preservation group, said the chemical has been approved by both the state and federal environmental agencies, and is used widely across the country in lakes and rivers.

"It's probably used in dozens — if not hundreds — of water bodies each year," said Bellaud.
Bellaud noted that in the lakes his agency works with, the herbicide has decreased the level of invasive species each year, while not impacting the native ones.

The hearing will resume at the Lenox Town Hall on April 2.

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St. Petersburg College has massive weeding job

SEMINOLE, FL — Officials at St. Petersburg College knew they'd have to clear out a few invasive plants when they decided to build a wildlife habitat and environmental center on the Seminole campus.

But "a few" has turned out to be an extensive clearing that has passers-by and neighbors turning their heads and wondering if the wetlands are being demolished to make way for a dormitory or some other college building.

"That is not demolition," said Jim Olliver, provost of the Seminole campus. "We're removing the exotic invasives. … This is an enhancement to the site."

The college called in experts from Pinellas County to identify the bad plants and to help obtain a $167,836 grant from the Florida Bureau of Invasive Plant Management to pay for the clearing.
Debbie Chayet, a grants specialist from the county's culture, education and leisure department, agreed that the 63- to 65-acre site does appear to be decimated.

"The area's got a lot of invasives in it, unfortunately," Chayet said. "It may look like a lot's been done but we've been very careful to make sure only the invasive species have been hit."

Chayet said 28 invasive plant species were found on the property, including Brazilian peppers, chinaberry trees and Chinese tallow. "It was a pretty diverse amount of invasives," she said.

But farther back, she said, "some really nice native vegetation" can be found, including oak trees and orchids. Those are the kind of plants the college and county want to encourage. They're hoping that the clearing, which should last through the next few months, will do that by removing the shady canopy that's choking out sun-loving native species.

The prospect for success seems good. Chayet said that in some cleared areas, native plants like maples and elderberries are already sprouting.

The return of the native plants is expected to take about a year, said Jon White, an SPC engineer who's working on the project. For now the land will lie fallow while nature takes its course. Once the entire project is complete, White said, there will be an environmental center and boardwalk that can be used for classes and opened to the public as a nature walk and educational center.
Link

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Delaware teachers participate in biotechnology weekend workshop

From UDaily, www.udel.edu

Fifteen Delaware public school teachers met at the Delaware Biotechnology Institute and the University of Delaware's Hugh R. Sharp Campus in Lewes Feb. 20-22 for a “biotechnology weekend.”

Sponsored by Delaware's National Science Foundation Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) outreach program and the DuPont Office of Education, the three-day workshop was offered to middle and high school teachers (grades 6-12).

Harsh Bais, an EPSCoR-funded assistant professor in the University of Delaware's Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, whose lab is based at DBI, spoke to the teachers about his research group's work on invasive plant species [such as Phragmites australis] and the molecular biology of those species. Link

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National Forests in N.C. approves non-native invasive species control

From the Citizen-Times.com

ASHEVILLE – Forest Supervisor Marisue Hilliard, has approved a strategy to control non-native invasive plants on the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests.

Native plants can be overrun by invading non-native plants. It is this group of plants land managers are attempting to control with the approval of this project.

The project will annually treat up to 1,100 acres of non-native invasive plants using a variety of methods. Manual or mechanical methods may include the use of shovels, loppers and saws.

Where appropriate, herbicides will be directly applied to target plants using spot treatment methods. Areas to be targeted will include legally designated rare species, rare plant communities, and/or areas including unique habitats.

“It is estimated there are over 25,000 infested acres across the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests” said Gary Kauffman, forest botanist.

The decision to implement this project provides managers with the flexibility to quickly respond to non-native plant infestations that pose a direct threat to the Forest’s native ecosystems.

Some of the species of particular concern on the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests include Oriental bittersweet, princess tree, privet, and Japanese honeysuckle.

For more information regarding the project decision and environmental assessment, visit www.cs.unca.edu/nfsnc.

Link

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Battle to control water milfoil on Cazenovia Lake (NY) leads to new fee for boat access

By Alaina Potrikus, The Post-Standard

Cazenovia, NY -- Village leaders have made some changes to last year's Cazenovia Lake boat launch policy in hopes of protecting the lake from invasive species, nearly doubling the price of access by adding an environmental impact fee and promising 100 percent inspection of boats.

The Cazenovia Village Board unanimously passed the amended policy Monday night, adding a $35 environmental impact fee to the $40 cost of the village's base permit for nonresidents using the public launch at Lakeside Park.

Trustees said the money would be used to cover round-the-clock inspections, with security guards from Morris Protective Services during high traffic hours weekday mornings and weekends, part-time employees during afternoons and volunteer staff in the evenings.

The inspections are part of a recent thrust of intermunicipal cooperation to help limit the impact of Eurasian watermilfoil, a weed whose presence has spread exponentially in recent summers. Town leaders have applied for a state permit to use the pesticide Renovate in sections of the lake this spring, a chemical that has had success in killing milfoil in Saratoga Lake and several of the Finger Lakes.

The eradication process will be paid for with both public and private dollars, and village officials said the increased fee would help keep other invasive species from becoming a problem in the future.

"The entire community is making an enormous investment in the health and quality of the lake," said Trustee Kurt Wheeler, who helped put together the plan for 2009. "It is reasonable that those who come to use the lake contribute as well.

Steve Wowelko, chairman of the Onondaga Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, said $75 seems steep.

"It will preclude the casual person who might come fishing once or twice from coming at all," said Wowelko, whose organization donated $1,000 for ramps at the park last year as a goodwill gesture from sportsmen in neighboring Onondaga County. "The local businesses will be hurt because people won't be coming."

Dan Bishop, director of fisheries for the state Department of Environmental Conservation's regional office, said nearby Otisco Lake has a remote car-top boat launch as well as several privately owned access points that charge $8 to $10 to launch. The state considers that lake to have full public access, and stocks the waters and manages the habitat, Bishop said.

"That's thought of as being a reasonable launch fee," he said. "In the case of Cazenovia Lake, the restrictions are much more severe. (A $75 permit fee) makes it much more prohibitive, much more discriminatory."

Trustee Paul Brooks questioned whether enough permits would be sold to cover the cost of the inspection regime. Last year, the village sold 248 permits at $40 each. The village banked this year's plan on selling 220 permits, with an anonymous lakefront donor covering the $2,200 shortfall.

"In an economic year like this, a doubling of the permit fee could yield 50 percent of what you had last year," Brooks said. "If people only fish here two or three times a year, they might go somewhere else instead."

The park will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. May 2 through Labor Day. In the fall, the launch will be supervised on an as-needed basis, to accommodate people taking their boats off the water.

Trustee Tom Tait said the hours could be altered to match the available funding.
"It's got to be a collaborative effort, and people will pay their part," Tait said. "Eurasian milfoil is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to invasive species." Link

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