GRAND TRAVERSE BAY PHRAGMITES STRATEGY

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• GRAND TRAVERSE BAY PHRAGMITES STRATEGY
• Brian Piccolo
• Wildlife Habitat Biologist, Private Lands
• Michigan Department of Natural Resources
• Ellen Kohler
• Policy Specialist
• The Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay

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Why now?

• Efforts on Beaver Island have
• reduced phragmites presence
• from 27 acres to 3 acres
• Phragmites presence in GT Bay
• is not yet out of control
• BUT each year we wait,
• the more overwhelming the
• problem will become
• THE GOOD NEWS
• WE CAN DO SOMETHING
• ABOUT THIS INVASIVE!

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Timeline

• DNR initiated a stakeholders group that discussed
  a GT Bay strategy at an October 2008 meeting in
  Traverse City.
• Stakeholders include conservation districts, area
  land conservancies, watershed groups, state
  government agencies, birders, fishers, local
  landowners and other interested parties.
• This winter, DNR worked with the Michigan Natural
  Features Inventory (MNFI) on a grant application
  to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to
  fund education, survey activities, and
  coordinated permitting for an area stretching
  from Muskegon to Mackinaw Bridge.
• Between January and March, DNR worked with
• stakeholders to hold meetings for local
  officials in
• Leelanau, Grand Traverse, Antrim and Charlevoix
• counties to educate them and discuss coordinated
  
• control efforts.
• DNR is sponsoring a workshop on
• June 6th at the Hagerty Center to educate
• the public about the problem and approaches
• to control.

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Preliminary Aerial Survey North End DNR 2008
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Preliminary Aerial Survey South End DNR 2008
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Strategy Framework

• Lead organization for each county to work with
  local governments as support and contact for
  MNFI/DNR on the early detection/rapid response
  work
• Assist MNFI with additional survey/detection
  efforts and education
• For townships with widespread presence seeking
  coordinated approach, lead organizations and DNR
  will work with townships on permit applications
• In other areas, lead organizations will provide
  information and support to private land owners
  with permit applications
• Lead organization in each county
• The Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay
• in Grand Traverse County
• Leelanau Conservation District
• in Leelanau County
• Antrim Conservation District
• in Antrim County
• Charlevoix Conservation District
• in Charlevoix County

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Phragmites Links

• www.agreatlakesjewel.org (Beaver Island video)
• wwwBeaverIslandAssociation.org
• www.charlevoixcd.org
• www.miseagrant.umich.edu (aquatic invasives page)
• www.peaine.org/environment (ordinance)
• www.stewartfarm.org/phragmites
• www.phragmites.info
• www.phragmites.org
• www.gtbay.org (lead for GT County)