Aquatic invasive species are non-native plants and animals that disrupt ecosystems, harm wildlife, and impact recreation. Learn how they spread, the problems they cause, and safe methods for control and management.
Since milfoil was first discovered in Lake George in 1985, roughly 200 locations where it is growing in the lake have been found. Officials have been able to manage the invasive Eurasian watermilfoil, which competes with and can displace native aquatic plants. Now, officials are hopeful that a three-year push to remove milfoil from Lake
Every summer, two Chelan County Public Utilities Division (Wenatchee, Washington) park maintenance workers use an Aquarius Systems weed harvester to cut and remove tons of Eurasian milfoil from parks and boat launches along the Columbia River. Without the PUD’s harvesting program, boat launches and swimming areas would be choked with weeds. The benefit from the
Plants that grow in and around water can have an impact on the long-term health of our area lakes. For this reason, the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board completes aquatic plant surveys on Minneapolis lakes every two to three years. These surveys document the increase or decline in different species of aquatic plants. Eurasian watermilfoil
A new study from the University of Minnesota challenges a common belief that lakes with diverse plant life are more resilient to aquatic invaders. The study by the U’s Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center looked at 13 years of vegetation survey data collected from about 1,100 lakes by the Department of Natural Resources. The
If Worcester, Massachusetts wants to keep using Indian Lake for recreation, then there needs be a concerted effort to reduce pollution. That is one of the main recommendations from a WPI study of the lake recently released by the Indian Lake Watershed Association. To avoid increased chemical treatment of the lake, the association and the
Lake Minnetonka is the 9th largest lake in Minnesota and of the most popular among boaters, fishermen and recreationalists. However, the popularity doesn’t come without environmental issues. Invasive species such as curly-leaf pondweed, purple loosestrife, Eurasian watermilfoil and zebra mussels have been discovered as well as dealing with various sources of pollution which has affected
Morses Pond, located in Wellesley Massachusetts not only provides the town with water, but provides the town with an excellent public beach and other and recreational activities. Morses Pond was overrun with weeds, but today they are barely noticeable. Efforts from a Morses Pond Management Plan written in November 2005 and fully implemented two years
An explosion of water chestnut is starting to choke the Sudbury River in Massachusetts to the point it’s nearly impossible to take a boat out. The Sudbury River in Framingham is just one spot in MetroWest and the Milford area under attack by aquatic weeds – invasive plants that experts say are changing the landscape,
A study by the Center for Limnology at UW-Madison says invasive species usually exist in low number and that overabundance is NOT the most common scenario. “Invasive species are often thought of as species that take over wherever they get in,” says Jake Vander Zanden, a UW limnology professor who directed the research. “But, in
One of the curses of local lake management — Eurasian milfoil — continues to defy expectations. At Monday’s Salem Town Board meeting, Supervisor Dennis Faber, who also is a commissioner of the Camp/Center Lakes Rehabilitation District in Wisconsin, said conventional wisdom going into this spring and summer was that the heavy snowfall of this year