Dear NEANS Panelists and ANS friends,
Please post to this page your Roundtable updates so that those not at the meeting will be able to read them and to keep the meeting summaries concise.
Thank you.
Michele L. Tremblay
Northeast Aquatic Nuisance Species Panel Forum
published by and for the Northeast Aquatic Nuisance Species Panel
Dear NEANS Panelists and ANS friends,
Please post to this page your Roundtable updates so that those not at the meeting will be able to read them and to keep the meeting summaries concise.
Thank you.
Michele L. Tremblay
Vermont NEANS Panel March 2013 update:
• When funds are available, VTDEC provides Department of Fish and Wildlife Game Wardens and Department of Public Safety (State Police) officers with grants to support supplemental officer hours at water body access points for AIS transport law enforcement. Funds in 2012 assisted the Department of Public Safety in making over 392 public contacts and 393 boats/trailer inspections, mostly at access points associated with Lake Champlain. While no tickets for illegal transport were issued, 13 warnings were awarded. A report from the Department of Fish and Wildlife is pending.
• In 2012, Vermont’s 24 inland water body greeter programs reported a total of 17,557 inspections of boats at Vermont lake access areas, up from 9,838 in 2011. Of these, 4% launching boats were found to be carrying plant material, including some that were carrying Eurasian watermilfoil and zebra mussels.
• State grant funds have been secured to employ a part-time public access greeter in 2013 to staff two of the five public access points during high use times on 839-acre Waterbury Reservoir (in central VT) confirmed with a significant population of Najas minor (brittle naiad) in 2012. Since these accesses are owned by the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, the greeter will also work with Parks’ staff to sustain this effort beyond 2013.
• 43 municipalities recently applied for grant funds to manage AIS in 2012 through the state “Grant-in-Aid” grant program. A percent of motorboat registration receipts, and frequently federal funds, annually support these grants. The status of federal funds could affect support for this program in 2013.
• Training for public access greeters in 2013 will be upped from one workshop to three in an effort to bring the workshops to regions with programs and increase the number of programs on high priority water bodies.
Lake Champlain Basin Program NEANS Panel March 2013 update:
– spiny water flea has not been detected in Lake Champlain. The long term biological monitoring program on Lake Champlain has been expanded to include monitoring for spiny water flea in the southern end of Lake Champlain where SWF are likely to enter the basin via the Champlain Canal or the La Chute River from the infestation in Lake George
-Asian clam management and control continues in Lake George. Mats have been left in the water over the winter months for the first time to evaluate the effectiveness of a winter treatment when mats will be down for a much longer period of time. There are 8 sites of infestation totaling over 25 acres in size. 4 sites are being managed with the goal of eradication and the four older and larger sites are being managed for containment. Results of current treatments will inform the 2013 treatment season.
– Funding that supports the local implementation grants for aquatic invasive species control and spread prevention will not be available in time for the 2013 field season. This will effect our local watershed and river organizations in the Lake Champlain Basin.
-The Lake Champlain Boat Launch Steward Program has a job announcement out to hire up to 10 stewards to work 4 days a week (Memorial Day through Labor Day) for the 2013 field season. The program was able to gain support to increase the number of days of coverage a week from 3 to 4.
– Lake Champlain Basin Program is working with the New York State Canal Corporation and the USACE on a scope of studies to initiate the Champlain Canal barrier feasibility study