Dear Clients & Friends,

We’d like to take this opportunity to thank our clients, colleagues and friends for making 2011 another successful year at Aquatic Control. This edition of the Watermark newsletter gives us a chance to fill you in on some interesting projects from last season and let you know about some exciting new innovations for the coming year. We value your business and professional relationships and look forward to working with you all in 2012 and beyond. As always, we welcome you to contact us anytime with questions, concerns or comments about existing and new projects.

- Gerald Smith, President & the ACT Staff

South Meadow Pond Hydrilla Control - Rapid Response In Action

In 2010, Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) was found in the South Meadow Pond complex located in Clinton and Lancaster, MA. Hydrilla is a highly invasive, non-native aquatic plant that has been slowly spreading into the New England region from more established colonies in the southern US. Aside from the fact that this was the 8th such infestation found in Massachusetts, the most disconcerting aspect of the discovery was that the South Meadow Pond complex is less than a mile away from Wachusett Reservoir, the primary drinking water source for Metropolitan Boston and a invaluable fish and wildlife resource.

The MA Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) along with the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), realizing the ecological danger of this situation, immediately began planning a response to the new infestation. Two projects were put out to RFP, one from DCR to assess, design and implement a plan to control the South Meadow Pond infestation and the other from MWRA to conduct a threat evaluation and develop a Rapid Response Plan for the Wachusett Reservoir.

Aquatic Control was selected for both of these projects in the Fall of 2010. Both projects began immediately upon award with field work to assess the extent of the hydrilla infestation. While the MWRA project relied heavily on literature and data review, the DCR plan involved the implementation of immediate hydrilla control measures. Aquatic Control was able to draw upon its considerable prior experience in managing hydrilla at six other sites located in MA, CT and ME. After securing emergency certifications from the Clinton and Lancaster Conservation Commissions, the hydrilla was treated with aquatic herbicides in October of 2010 to reduce plant biomass and prevent further spread in the ponds and neighboring waterbodies.

Control of the infestation and minimizing the ongoing presence of hydrilla plants in the ponds is a primary goal of the ongoing management plan. To that end, treatment with Sonar (fluridone) herbicide and additional monitoring tasks were conducted in 2011. Continued treatments with alternating herbicides, diver hand-pulling, bottom barriers and assessment of the hydrilla and it’s reproductive structures (tubers and turions) will all be part of the ongoing project which was recently awarded to Aquatic Control through 2015.

Red Lily Pond / Lake Elizabeth Restoration

Red Lily Pond and Lake Elizabeth, located in Barnstable, MA are important and valuable fresh water resources for fish, wildlife, and local residents alike. In recent years, the benefits provided by these waterbodies have been threatened by the excessive growth of aquatic vegetation, specifically waterlilies (Nymphaea & Nuphar), watershield (Brasenia) and emergent water willow (Decodon). Realizing the impacts this plant growth was having on open water and “edge” habitat, the Town in cooperation with the Red Lily Pond Association contracted Aquatic Control to develop, permit and implement a long-term, non-chemical management program.

After conducting a wildlife habitat assessment, developing a management plan and preparing a Notice of Intent for the Town, Aquatic Control began a comprehensive mechanical Hydro-Raking program to remove targeted areas of aquatic plant growth. Beyond the general improvement of fish and wildlife habitat value, the plant removal program further focused on enhancing fish passage and spawning characteristics for anadromous fish species. The project required more than 20 days of Hydro-Raking over about a month’s time to remove an estimated 1,000 cubic yards of plant material from the two ponds. In addition to the Hydro-Rake, we utilized a mechanical harvester to shuttle material from the work area to specific shoreline offloading stations. This greatly increased the efficiency of the project and allowed the Hydro-Rake to maximize its plant removal workload.

Harmful Algae Blooms - What You Need To Know

The occurrence of “harmful algal blooms” (HAB’s) is probably most familiar to people in conjunction with the marine environment (i.e. “red tides” or shellfish advisories) but awareness of their freshwater counterparts in on the rise. The potential adverse effects of algal blooms include degradation of water quality, surface scums, taste & odor problems and the production of algal toxins. In freshwater lakes and ponds, the organisms that produce algal toxins are cyanobacteria, otherwise known as blue-green algae and the most common culprits in the northeast are Microcystis and Anabena. The potential presence of varied toxins is of paramount concern to human and animal health. There have been numerous documented cases of wildlife and domestic animal deaths attributed to algal toxin exposure and some cases of sickness in humans.

In attempts to mitigate the risks to human health, the World Health Organization issued guidance on cyanobacteria related toxins in 2003. Various state health agencies have incorporated this guidance and other studies to develop their own set of guidelines for recreation waters. In April of 2008, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health issued “MDPH Guidelines for Cyanobacteria in Freshwater Recreational Bodies in Massachusetts”. This guidance proposes measures of cyanobacteria cell counts and direct toxin testing be used to post advisories against contact with the water. In summary, if there is a visible cyanobacteria scum/mat, if the blue-green species cell count exceeds 70,000 cells/ml or if the microcystin concentration exceeds 14 ppb, the MDPH recommend posting the advisory and following up with at least weekly testing until cell counts or toxin levels drop below the guideline for two consecutive weeks. The MDPH guidelines and other helpful information on HAB’s can be found on their website here.

Some waterbodies, especially those with dense cyanobacteria, can potentially pose a health threat to humans and wildlife under severe bloom conditions. Although not all strains of Microcystis and Anabena produce toxins, there is no way to differentiate in the field and we recommend monitoring algae cell counts and, if necessary, test for algal toxins. Regular monitoring of algal density in recreational waterbodies is always a good idea. Simple water clarity readings using a standard Secchi Disk can indicate the onset of algal blooms at which time samples can be collected for algal identification/enumeration and toxin analyses. If you would like to discuss monitoring the algae in your pond or lake, are interested in having your waterbody tested for algae toxins or finding out more about algae/toxin analysis services, please feel free to give us a call.

Some Exciting New Products for Aquatics

Several products have recently come on the market that promise to provide exciting new opportunities for many management programs. Clipper (flumioxazin) is a contact herbicide that was registered last year in many New England states. The most notable thing about this herbicide is that it provides another option for control of fanwort. We were able to use this new herbicide in several programs last summer with good success (See top picture). Clipper provides rapid control of a number of aquatic species and has a favorable toxicology profile and minimal water use restrictions.

Another new product, Phoslock, promises to provide in-lake phosphorus reduction without the associated pH changes common with other phosphorus reducing technologies like alum (aluminum sulfate). With phosphorus being the primary nutrient for algae growth, lowering in-lake concentrations with Phoslock should improve water quality and may prevent or reduce the severity of nuisance algae blooms.

SeClear is a new algaecide from SePro Corporation that promises phosphorus reductions while also controlling algae. The combination of these properties will hopefully extend the duration of algae control and help improve water quality with the same application.

We are looking to utilize these new technologies for our clients where appropriate but feel free to contact us if you'd like to discuss them for your lake or pond.