Florida's Aquatic Plant Management Programs · •435 authorized management programs - 65,233 acres FY15-16 ... •Azolla pinnata. ... Slide 1 Author:

Florida’s Aquatic Plant

Management Programs

…Clewiston, FL

April 11, 2017Matt Phillips

FL Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Invasive Plant Management Section

Florida Waters

• 2.5m acres surface water

• 1.5m acres lakes & rivers

• 7,700 lakes & ponds

• 1,700 rivers & streams

• Thousands of miles of canals

FWC Responsibility

• 463 public lakes and rivers

- 1.26 million acres

• 60 exotic species - (98%)

- 20 invasive - (96%)

• 435 authorized management programs

- 65,233 acres FY15-16

- $17.96M FY15-16

Uses of Florida Public Waters

Recreation

Listed Species

Crops vs. Invasive Plants

• Crop Management / lawn

– control multiple weeds (native and

invasive plants) among 1-2 desired

species

• Invasive Plant Management

– control 1-10 invasive weeds among

multiple (100s) desired species

Native vs. Exotic vs. Invasive

Invasive Species: NISC

• non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration and

• whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health

Invasive Plants

Characteristics of Invasive Plants

• Rapid growth to reproductive maturity

• Multiple reproductive methods

• Wide dispersal and survival

• Broad environmental tolerance

• Resists management and control

Program Components

• Prevention

• Assessment / EDRR

• Regulation / Compliance

• Management / Control

• Research

• Vegetation planting/Habitat

enhancement

• Education & Outreach

Prevention

DHS / USDA

Importation

USDA

Interstate

FDACS

Nurseries

Assessment

Detection - Priorities - Evaluation

Early Detection - Rapid Response

• $ 1 million contingency

• Salvinia molesta

• Ipomoea aquatica

• Luziola subintegra

• Phyllanthus fluitans

• Azolla pinnata

Water Hyacinth & Water Lettuce

• Floating plants

• Invasive exotics

• South America

• Problems

– Flood control

– Navigation

– Recreation

– Environmental

Floating Plant Problems

Hydrilla

• Submersed - to 35 feet

• Invasive exotic

• SE Asia

• Problems

– Flood Control

– Navigation

– Recreation

– Environmental

Hydrilla

• Submersed - to 35 feet

• Invasive exotic

• SE Asia

• Problems

– Flood Control

– Navigation

– Recreation

– Environmental

Hydrilla Problems

Other Plants

Other Plants

Program Components

• Prevention

• Assessment / EDRR

• Regulation / Compliance

• Management / Control

• Research

• Vegetation planting

• Education & Outreach

√

Management Decisions

• Uses / functions

• Impairment

• Current conditions

• Technology

• Cost / budget

Control Options

• Biological 19

• Chemical 18

• Cultural / Physical 9

• Mechanical 4

• Environmental

Biological

Plant # Biocontrols

Alligatorweed 3

Hydrilla 5

Water hyacinth 4

Water lettuce 2

Melaleuca 3

Lygodium 2

Biocontrols

Mechanical - History

Mechanical

• Non-selective

• Slow (2-8 acres/day)

• Cost prohibitive

• Small areas

Harvest - Shred

Harvest

• Harvest

• Haul / Dispose

• Spread

• $10,000 - $20,000 / ac

Cultural / Physical

• Hand removal

• Diver dredge

• Prescribed fire

• Drawdown*

• Flooding*

• Barriers

• Dyes

• Rakes

Environmental Control

hydrilla uprooted…

…and blown away !

Chemical Control

Chemical 15/28/91

USEPA-FDACS Registered Herbicides

Herbicide #

bispyribac 1

carfentrazone 1

copper 3

diquat 1

endothall 4

flumioxazin 1

fluridone 6

glyphosate 1

Herbicide #

imazamox 1

imazapyr 1

penoxsulam 2

peroxide 1

topramezone 1

triclopyr 2

2,4-D 2

Chemical 18/31/94

USEPA-FDACS Registered Herbicides

Herbicide #

Diquat + Endothol 1

2,4-D + Triclopyr 1

Sethoxydim 1

Herbicide Registration

Process for aquatic registration

~ 140 health and environmental tests

~ 8-10 years for full EPA registration

~ $40-60 million for aquatic registration

Herbicide Registration

• USEPA registers for aquatic use

• FDACS registers for FL use

– envt. agencies comment to FDACS

– new compounds - uses / sites

• FWC permits / contracts use in water

– funds research

• rates, selectivity, timing, synergy

Research Management

• Reproductive methods

– seed / propagule viability

• Weakness in life cycle

• Susceptibility to available controls

– synergistic effects

• Impacts to non-target organisms

1970-2017 $31.6 million

Funded 252 projects

Research Program

Category Funds

Biocontrol (10) $ 622,334

Ecological (3) $ 126,686

Education (6) $ 397,584.49

Herbicide (12) $ 488,252.14

Prevention (1) $ 35,995

TOTAL 32 $1,670,851.63

FY 16-17 Research and Education Projects

Mesocosm

Herbicide Research

Ponds

Small lakesLarge scale

Minimize Herbicide Use

• Integrate with other methods

• Apply lowest effective rates

• Apply when target is most susceptible

• Control before problems develop

Maintenance Control

Maintenance Control

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Un

its i

n T

ho

usan

ds

Year

Hyacinth Acres

Acres Controlled

Tons of Organics

Pounds of Herbicide

Suwannee River Water Hyacinth - 1974 - 2013

Maintenance Control

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1947 1959 1969 1979 1989 1999 2009 2013

Acre

s (

tho

usan

ds)

Year

Water hyacinth 1947 - 2013

~ 25,000 - 35,000 ac / yr

~ $2.5 - $3.5 M / yr

Habitat Enhancement

Management Decisions

• Uses / functions

• Plant species present

• Impairment

• Technology

• Current conditions

• Budget

Management Dilemma

• Manager perspective

– control invasive plants before they

become a problem

• Stakeholder perspective

– don’t control plants until they

become a problem

Coordination

• USACE • Local government

• USEPA • Private businesses

• USDA • Public / associations

• USFWS

• USGS

• FDEP

• FWCC

• FDACS

• WMDs

• Universities

How does this Work on Okeechobee?

Lake Okeechobee Interagency Group

• Meets every 2 months to Quarterly to

discuss lake Management issues

• Allows for public participation/comment

• Alternate locations between Clewiston and

Okeechobee; Sometimes in Lee County.

• Meetings noticed on the Task force website

(USACOE).

• Workplans developed with group input.

What is a workplan and how can

I find what is going on?

Myfwc.com

Summary of Okeechobee Operations

• Biocontrol

• Habitat Enhancement

• Rx fire

• Mechanical

• Herbicide

Megamelus scutellaris,

a biocontrol agent of

Waterhyacinth• Planthopper found in the native

range of waterhyacinth (South America)

• ONLY feeds on waterhyacinth - they drink the plant’s juices causing it to grow slower or not at all– Damage from this insect cannot

easily be seen on the plants

• Can fly or hop away from plants that have been sprayed with herbicide

Megamelus scutellaris and

Lake Okeechobee

• USDA Invasive Plant Research

Lab has released over 241,000

Megamelus in 17 locations

around Lake Okeechobee since

2014

• Insects have spread >1 km from

a release site by themselves

• Releases of 10,000-26,000

continue monthly with the help

of David Lattuca (USACE) and

Susanna Toledo (FWC)

Habitat Enhancement Projects

• Bulrush Plantings (Cody’s Cove)

• NW Marsh Tree Plantings

• Scraped areas Maintenance

Cody’s Cove Bulrush Planting

NW Marsh Tree Planting

Scraped Areas Maintenance

Control To Support Enhancement

• FY15-16: 2,742 ac cattail, 223 ac

torpedograss, 412 ac Phragmites

• FY14-15: 3,998 ac cattail, 3105.5 ac

torpedograss, 56 ac Brazilian pepper,

20.5 ac Cogongrass

• FY13-14: 1,500 ac cattail, 316.5 ac

torpedograss, 200 ac phragmites, 78.2

ac hydrilla, and 14.25 ac cogongrass

Rx Fire on Okeechobee

FY15-16: 6,500 Acres

FY 14-15: 159 Acres

Mechanical

• No Mechanical treatments last 3 years*

Herbicide Control Summary

FY 14-15

FY2014-2015 21334.01 $2,312,749.09

Floating Plants (Eichhornia and Pistia) 10866.51 $1,624,714.43

Hymenachne amplexicaulis 61 $7,372.34

Imperata cylindrica 20.5 $3,249.43

Luziola subintegra 228.5 $47,618.27

Nymphoides cristata 0.75 $1,616.04

Oxycaryum cubense 231 $30,556.69

Panicum repens 3215.5 $240,696.00

Pistia stratiotes 2511 $262,176.18

Schinus terebinthifolius 56 $9,757.83

Tussocks 83.75 $12,490.91

Typha spp. 4059.5 $72,500.97

FY15-16

FY2015-2016 17895.6 $2,218,264.89


Hydrocotyle spp. 7 $829.47

Hymenachne amplexicaulis 2 $392.53

Luziola subintegra 146 $27,058.45

Nymphoides cristata 1 $443.29

Oxycaryum cubense 41.5 $6,744.00

Panicum repens 387.5 $48,705.91

Phragmites australis 412 $30,549.03

Tussocks 51 $12,050.82

Typha spp. 4327 $468,329.15

FY16-17FY2016-2017 12408.54 $1,699,162.16

Ampelopsis arborea 19.78 $18,005.13

Eichhornia crassipes 17.42 $13,006.83


Hydrilla verticillata 26.31 $13,419.67

Hymenachne amplexicaulis 0.25 $118.53

Imperata cylindrica 9.55 $16,877.84

Ipomoea sp. 2.4 $9,357.67

Ludwigia spp. (other) 0.5 $2,670.08

Luziola subintegra 133.5 $26,351.37

Melaleuca quinquenervia 0.4 $1,017.18

Mormodica charantia 16.85 $64,232.02

Nymphoides cristata 2.6 $605.71

Oxycaryum cubense 227.98 $40,278.84

Panicum repens 78 $11,724.35

Pistia stratiotes 277.07 $59,097.17

Schinus terebinthifolius 1.7 $3,545.92

Scleria lacustris 1 $1,005.51

Tussocks 102.5 $20,094.00

Typha spp. 0 $371.73

Questions?

Additional Slides

Common Herbicide Mixes Summary

• Diquat: 2 quarts herb. + 100 gallons water

per acre (adjuvants ~0.3 gpa

• 2,4-D: 2 quarts herb. + 100 gallons water per

acre (adjuvants ~0.3 gpa)

• Flumioxazin: 3 ounces herb. + 100 gallons

water per acre (adjuvants ~0.3 gpa)

• Penoxsulam: 4 ounces herb. + 100 gallons

water per acre (adjuvants ~0.3 gpa)

Habitat Work in support of nesting colony

This cattail treatment was made at the Boy Scout cut entrance to the lake from the rim canal after an airboat accident had taken place in the vicinity. 4 years ago.

opening a broad area for visibility and fisherman use. Remains open today.

Moratorium?

• See moratorium document (Word

document) attached with this

presentation

• An herbicide use moratorium for the control of water hyacinth was declared in July, 1986 on

Lake Okeechobee in response to a widespread algae bloom. Herbicide use was replaced with

much less effective mechanical harvesting, resulting in an expansion of water hyacinth from

2,000 acres to 8,000 acres in five months, despite continued mechanical harvester and

biological control activity. In the final analysis, it took more than two years, $2 million and the

control of 11,000 acres of water hyacinth using herbicide to re-establish maintenance control of

water hyacinth in Lake Okeechobee.

By late 1986, water hyacinth and water lettuce blocked nearly all of the flood control structures and

navigation canals within Lake Okeechobee. At left is a harvester (in circle) struggling to remove

floating plant masses from the Moorehaven Canal just upstream of the navigation lock into the

Caloosahatchee River.

Water hyacinth (dark) and water lettuce (light) block

the public and commercial boat ramps at Okeetantie

on the northeast side of Lake Okeechobee in late

summer of 1986.

The slow process of regaining maintenance control. The following photos were taken in April 1987.

At right is the public beach and pier on the north end

of Lake Okeechobee. Brown color in the ensuing

photos is controlled water hyacinth. Diquat herbicide

was the primary herbicide used because it controls

both water hyacinth and water lettuce but does not

kill beneficial plants like bulrush or spikerush.

The outer edge of the water hyacinth mat in the

marsh just south of the Kissimmee River entrance

into Lake Okeechobee has been controlled (brown).

A wide band of hyacinth remained (dark green) to be

controlled after the initial plants sunk and

decomposed. All the while new plants bud off of

existing plants, seeds germinate, and hyacinth drifts

in from other areas of the lake. Because of this

constant regrowth and recruitment, regaining control

took well over a year.

Controlling water hyacinth around Rita Island on the

south end of Lake Okeechobee.

Controlling water hyacinth in the Chancey Bay area

of northeast Lake Okeechobee.

uncontrolled hyacinth

Dr. Chuck Cicra Study on Herbicide

application to bedding fish.

Documents

Florida's Aquatic Plant Management Programs · •435 authorized management programs - 65,233 acres FY15-16 ... •Azolla pinnata. ... Slide 1 Author: