| |||
Summertime in the BelgradesContentsfor Printing Article Summaries |
Are We Winning the Milfoil Battle?
By Peter Lowell When the Lakes Environmental Association initiated the Maine Milfoil Summit in 2000 and began promoting legislation to establish an invasive aquatic plant program at the DEP there was no clear idea of how many water bodies in Maine were infested. At this year's summit, the DEP's new commissioner, David Littell, announced that no new infestations had been discovered in 2005. Courtesy Boat Inspections had increased to more than 40,000 from 30,000 in 2004. In four instances, dangerous plants were intercepted at launch sites as far north as Rangeley. In Maine, there are currently 20 lakes or ponds and six rivers infested with invasive plants. Most are within an hour's drive of the Lakes Region (Naples/Bridgton). There is certainly reason to be proud of the success of Maine's program. Its strength comes from the powerful partnerships that have been built between state agencies, municipalities, lake associations, bass clubs and landowners. But there has also been an enormous element of good luck, which is difficult to explain or quantify. With thousands of boats entering Maine each year from states with extensive infestations and with thousands of boats moving in and out of Maine's infested lakes, we have been extremely lucky to have only a couple of dozen lakes and ponds infested out of almost 6,000. No one wants to rely for too long on luck, so the only option is to strengthen the program to match the magnitude of the threat. LEA is working with the DEP and other organizations to build a case for additional state support for the invasives program shared by the departments of Environmental Protection and Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Funding from the "milfoil stickers" provides all of the support for that program. Sticker income is stable but it has also leveled off, so inflation is chipping away at the financial resources. The Legislature and Departments face the need to re-enforce the program or risk losing more Maine waters to invasive plants. Those who care about Maine lakes will need to gear up again to make the case to a Legislature that is always reluctant to spend. For information about which legislators represent an area and get their phone numbers and addresses, call Peter Lowell is Executive Director of the Lakes Environmental Association. | ||
