MILFOIL AT PRIEST LAKE
| By Carlos Landa |
Over th e past week I saw a number of postings about a Milfoil meeting to be held on July 31st at the Kalispel Bay boat launch. I had heard about the problems down at Lake Pend Oreille and along the river and wanted to know more about the situation at Priest so I took the morning off and headed to the lake. Upon arriving I met Representative Eric Anderson who introduced me to Tom and Matt. They were State Employees who had come in from Boise to meet with County and Federal officials, the general community and to do a survey of the lake over the next two days.
Milfoil, or Eurasian Watermilfoil as it is called, is an aquatic plant that is not native to this area. It is a very aggressive plant that will choke out all the native species and grow to a point that people can't even boat through a mature patch of the stuff. It grows in those depths up to that which is penetrated by sunlight, over 30 feet in some parts of Priest and if not eradicated quickly it can get out of control and ruin the lake. I understand that the problems in Lake Pend Oreille will end up costing millions of dollars and years of time because too little action came way too late. The other problem with the plant is that any part of the plant can regenerate so if it isn't harvested properly, i.e. You get all of the plant including its root system out of the water, it will simply grow back. If a boat runs through a patch of the stuff and the propeller breaks it up new plants will be growing wherever the wind or waves may carry it. This is serious stuff!
Some of the Sandpoint community came up to help and they brought along samples of Milfoil and other aquatic native plants for us to learn to identify. It was interesting to learn of the species that are integral to both the water quality and fish habitat of the lake; Whitewater Buttercup, Coontail, Elodea and a variety of Pondweeds. We even have a native Milfoil that isn't like the invasive Eurasian species.
We also had a lively discussion about how to control the outbreak. Some favored an immediate solution of using chemicals which provoked a bit of tension among some of those gathered. I pointed out that even if this is a viable solution it is a political and bureaucratic nightmare because those opposed to it a very adamant about their position and it tends to polarize the community just when we need to join together. Other options discussed were hand harvesting, dredging, putting impervious material over the outbreak to starve it from sunlight and I also heard mention of a beetle that eats the stuff. All of these options have inherent risks; do the herbicides have side effects, any time it is touched you have the potential of some of it breaking off; covering it kills everything including the good plants, and who knows the long term effects of introducing another non native animal into the eco system. (Having been through the Brine Shrimp fiasco in the late 60's, early 70's I want nothing to do with that!)
The discussion then turned to the cause of its presence which is most likely a single source; boaters from infested lakes bringing it here by not washing their boats before they come to Priest Lake. This is the key piece of any long term solution. The Forest Service has set up a boat wash at the Welcome Center but it doesn't appear to be the right location. I personally think that there needs to be a County wide mandatory boat washing ordinance and that we should prevent anyone that can't prove they have a clean boat from launching. The cost of such a program should be paid by those boaters that are coming here, any out of area boater has to buy a dated sticker when you use the boat wash and present it to an attendant before launching. I hate to see more regulations but the cost of eradication is so high that prevention is necessary
I was also astonished to find that we do have Milfoil infestations at both Granite Creek and Bear Creek. Milfoil has also been sighted at Bottle Bay and it is rumored that the east side of Coolin may also be infested.
After the meeting the participants separated into four groups to survey the north part of the lake that day and the south the next. I had to get back to work but before I left Eric and I drove up to Kaniksu Resort to look around. Immediately Eric found Eurasian Milfoil right at the docks. We could also see pieces floating in the water. All the classic signs: an unattended boat launch, motor boats to cut it with their props, and wind to carry it up lake. How disgusting! I stood there thinking that we were too late. The lake I have known my whole life would soon be cloaked with Milfoil and we would be just like our neighbors south. Damn
About that time Doug Freeland showed up. Doug owns ACE Diving, an aquatic eradication company that has the contract with Bonner County to dredge for Milfoil. Doug has had a lot of success with smaller lakes in the area but the big ones are harder. He said he could keep the swimming areas at Lake Pend Oreille clean but there was simply too much Milfoil in other parts of the lake for his company to handle. Eric said is costs hundreds of dollars per acre to dredge and the government doesn't have the resources to do the whole lake. They will have to use more cost effective means to get a handle on it, herbicides most likely. We showed Doug the Milfoil in the marina and he said he would begin dredging the area this week. He also said that he could do all the known areas around the lake before he went back to Sandpoint. This, in conjunction with the survey taking place, is a great start to solving our problem. You don't know how relieved I was to know that both the State and County are taking this very seriously and that we have a viable chance to save the lake if we are diligent.
As I drove home I thought about the need to make every one around the lake more aware of what is happening. If boaters knew how to identify the plant, be vigilant about watching for it, and report its location when found we could have a real possibility of keeping it under control. Then if the County and the Feds could set up the boat washing program to prevent its re introduction we would be in good shape for the future.
Then I began to think about Pigs and Wings. If I've known about Milfoil for years and have just now begun to understand its consequences how can I expect others to take the time before its too late.? After all, there were only a couple of dozen people at the meeting and half of them were various officials. I had taken Doug's email address: acediving@hotmail.com (208-755-0800) and also that of Brad Bluemer of the County Weed Department; bbluemer@co.bonner.id.us (208-263-3175). One thing I knew I could do is try to get their information on the Internet. Thanks to Peky Cox and this website it got done.
You can also report sightings to the Idaho Noxious Weed Program at 208-332-8528 or the Forest Service Noxious Weed Coordinator at 208-267-6713.
Please take the time to familiarize yourself with the plant. If you see or even think you see some get in touch with either Brad or Doug. They want this lake to be a success story and can only do so if we help them look. The other thing to do is tell your visitors that they need to wash their watercraft thoroughly before launching. If you take your boat to another lake you need to do the same. Lastly please take the time to thank Representative Eric Anderson and the County Commissioners for making this a priority when it comes to funding. All the best, Pancho Landa
Carlos “Pancho” Landa and his family have a home in Kalispel Bay and have been coming to the lake since the early 1900's. He can be reached at carlos@cet.com