Rep. Mike McClellan Addresses “Milfoil Sticker Bill” at 15th Annual Milfoil Summit

Lincoln, Maine Town Square Centered Around Mattanawcook Pond
Lincoln, Maine Town Square Centered Around Mattanawcook Pond
February 27, 2014
Out and About for the Bangor Lakes Region of Maine Mar. 6-12
Out and About for the Bangor Lakes Region of Maine Mar. 6-12
March 5, 2014

Rep. Mike McClellan Addresses “Milfoil Sticker Bill” at 15th Annual Milfoil Summit

Rep. Mike McClellan Addresses “Milfoil Sticker Bill” at 15th Annual Milfoil Summit

Azure Sky and Water at Pleasant Lake in Casco, Maine

by Leigh Macmillen Hayes

A large crowd of Maine lake association members and others interested in protecting our lakes, ponds and rivers from invasive aquatic plant species gathered on February 28 for the 15th Annual Milfoil Summit sponsored by the Lakes Environmental Association.

 

 

 

 

 

 


The summit, held at USM’s Lewiston-Auburn College, opened with a documentary entitled The Hunt for Aquatic Invaders prepared for the Maine Lakes Volunteer Monitoring (VLMP) Program by videographer Stephen Underwood and VLMP’s Executive Director Roberta Hill.
The good news–less than 1% of Maine lakes are affected by invasive aquatic plants. The bad news–60% of the lakes in states to our south, west and north are affected. “This stuff travels,” noted Hill. “It doesn’t take much at all.” She pointed out that no lake is too cold or too far north to be immune and used Lake Champlain in Vermont as an example, where invasives include zebra mussels, alewives, Eurasian watermilfoil and variable-leaf milfoil.
Almost 500 invasive plants were pulled from Maine boats this past year. Hill explained that if something slips through the cracks, there needs to be a line of defense including screening a lake for the presence of invaders, activating locally sustainable efforts to eradicate the invasive and completing a survey of all aquatic plants in a given body of water. Volunteers are the front line in this attack because they want to protect what they love. The challenge in Maine is enormous with all the water that we have.
Peter Lowell, executive director of Lakes Environmental Association (LEA), gave a brief overview of the enormous cost and effort that lake associations and volunteers are incurring. Here’s a sampling: Bryant Pond and Shagg Pond have spent $160,000 over the past 11 years; Pleasant Lake and Parker Pond have been milfoil free for the last three years, but folks there remain vigilant after spending $160,000 over eight years; Thompson Lake has a mixed story on various projects; Lake Arrowhead has spent nearly $350,000 for two DASH boats during their 8-year program, and still have three areas of infestation that equal approximately 300 acres combined; Little Sebago has spent $476,000 since 2007; and Damariscotta Lake has spent $15,000 and now has less than 1/4 acre of hydrilla left after a five-year project. There’s more, but the point is that these groups receive only a small proportion of the Milfoil sticker fees. They use their own money and spend hundreds of hours tackling the dirty silt and cold water year after year. Lowell says, “Funds from the Lake and River Protection sticker, currently about $5,740 annually for each group, have been almost insignificant given the overall cost of these clean-up projects. In 2013, about $80,000 in state funding was provided to 17 groups who contributed nearly $500,000 of their own funding and match.”
The Keynote speaker at the summit was Representative Mike McClellan who introduced LD 1626: An Act To Leverage Expert, State-based Resources for Emergent Intervention and Long-term Comprehensive Resource Protection of Lakes before the 126th Maine Legislature, Second Regular Session. The bill would raise the Milfoil sticker fee by $5.
McClellan explained that constituent Diane Potvin brought the milfoil problem before his eyes and asked him to put this forth in legislation. “I knew milfoil was bad,” says McClellan, “but I didn’t know how bad it was. Education is a proponent of the bill. We want to inform people who don’t understand.”
The hope is that this bill will generate $500,000 that would be spread back into the communities to eradicate milfoil and other aquatic invasive plants in our waterbodies.
McClellan stated that he senses some legislators are proposing taking money from the general fund and not increasing the fees. He also cautioned that the bill could pass, but not get funded. Though he feels that Governor LePage is passionate about the issue, McClellan knows the governor doesn’t like to increase fees. He strongly encouraged all present at the milfoil summit to call or write their legislators and the governor. Click here to view a video clip from the Summit.
John McPhedran of the Maine DEP later stated that LD 1626 would provide funds that would help make the invasive plant programs effective for the long term. Senator Collins delivered a message via video and further encouraged all present to continue the volunteer effort.
Lowell ended the summit by stating, “The wheels are turning in Augusta. The wheels are definitely turning. We just need to grease them. Keep contacting your legislators.”
To learn more about lakefront properties for sale on Pleasant Lake and Parker Pond in Raymond, click on the green box above.
To learn more about the fight against milfoil, check out the blog links below.
Milfoil Success Story on Songo River in Sebago Lakes Region of Maine
Maine Lakefront Property Owners Check For Aquatic Invaders
Lake Arrowhead Residents Make Difference in Battle Against Milfoil

 

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