Alton Attacks Milfoil?

[mcdude]

From the Baysider 12/10/09

Board offers
milfoil support

BY BRENDAN BERUBE

Staff Writer

ALTON

— Selectmen joined local business owners and residents of the Alton Bay Christian Conference Center Monday night in pledging financial support for the milfoil committee’s efforts to rid Alton of the invasive
aquatic plant. Presenting the committee’s findings and treatment proposal to the selectmen, committee Chairman Jonathan Downing recalled seeing milfoil make its first appearance in Alton’s waterways in the 1960s, and
said he had seen the town try every method of control imaginable over the years, from pulling plants by hand to cutting them at the root. The town’s milfoil committee, he said, was created in May of 2008 with a three-part mission: Identify the problem; formulate a plan and budget to provide long-term control for the problem; and make recommendations to
the selectmen for the purpose of carrying out the plan. After surveying Alton’s 19.3 miles of inland waterways (which constitute roughly 22
percent of the town), Downing explained, the committee identified a total of 33 acres of variable milfoil. With the aid of a PowerPoint slideshow depicting maps of the affected areas, Downing explained that the committee found 4.5 acres of milfoil in and around the southern tip of
the bay, between the Alton Bay bandstand and the Route 11 bridge.
Another 16.5 acres was discovered along the Merrymeeting River, from the Route 11 bridge to the dam; an additional 3.7 acres in the back bay area, near Rand Cove; 12.5 acres in Minge Cove (which was treated with private funds earlier this year); and 8.3 acres near Smalls Cove and the West Alton Marina. The infestation,Downing said, affects a total of 106 waterfront property owners (including condominiums, restaurants, and their businesses); five marinas and public boat launches; 171 back lot owners who have access to the lake; and 733 boat slips. Milfoil, he said, is a problem that “does not go away,” and requires constant monitoring and treatment. “I can’t over-emphasize the emergency,” he added, noting that committee members hauled milfoil out of the Downings Landing
area this past summer by the 55-gallon bucketful. If left untreated, he explained, the infestation will continue to grow, discouraging tourism by making local waterways unattractive to boaters, canoeists, and kayakers
and de-valuing shorefront properties, resulting in a shifting of the tax burden onto the shoulders of inland property owners. Unchecked milfoil growth near the town beach, he said,would also increase the risk of
drownings in that area. Explaining that the committee had adopted the stance that “if we’re going to do [a treatment], we’re going to do it right,”Downing presented the selectmen with a proposal to hit all 33 acres of milfoil with a single dose of herbicide next year, and follow the initial treatment up with a re-treatment a few weeks later. Breaking down the cost of a herbicide treatment, Downing explained that the town would need to raise $1,887.90 to treat the southern tip of the bay; $5,009.90 to treat the Merrymeeting River; $1,693.30 to treat the Rand Cove area; and
$2,863.70 to treat the Small’s Cove area — a grand total of $16,363, 30 percent (or $4,909) of which the state Department of Environmental Services has promised to match with a grant. In view of the fact that
town officials will have to sign an agreement with the DES no later than Dec. 23 in order to receive the matching funds, Downing said he and his wife, Nancy (also a member of the committee), had pledged $1,000 toward the cost of treating the southern part of the bay, where the infestation is threatening their business, Downing’s Landing. The committee, he added, also asked the owners of marinas affected by the milfoil infestation whether they would be willing to donate. Brian Fortier, owner of the West Alton Marina, said from the audience that he would
absorb the $2,863.70 cost of treating the Small’s Cove area. A representative from the Alton Bay Christian Conference Center said the organization would be willing to cover the $1,693 cost of treating
the Rand Cove area. Pointing out that the portion of the treatment left unfunded was the Merrymeeting River, Downing asked whether any audience members would be willing to donate toward the remaining
$5,009.90, but received no response. Asked what the impact of not treating the river would be, Downing replied that ignoring the river would essentially make the remaining treatments a waste of money. “The river’s the source,”he said, explaining that its contents feed into the lake. If push came to shove, he added, the selectmen should be able to dip into the town’s undesignated fund balance for the $5,009.90 needed to
treat the river. Confirming with Downing that the money the committee
was requesting was for next year’s treatment only, Selectman Loring Carr asked whether the board should consider placing an article on the 2010 town Warrant seeking funds for treatment in 2011. Downing felt that a Warrant article would be prudent. Explaining that the DES had lowered its matching grants from 50 percent to 30 percent this year in order to
make funding available to more communities, Selectman Peter Bolster (who also serves as a state representative) said there should be more money available next year due to an increase in the milfoil surcharge on boat registrations. Fortier suggested that the selectmen look into the possibility
of funneling boat registration revenue from the town’s general fund into milfoil treatment. Bolster agreed, urging local boat owners to register directly with the town, and not with the state, thereby ensuring
that the revenue stays in Alton. Downing noted that a coalition of milfoil committees throughout the state, including Alton’s, recently pledged
its support for a proposed bill that would add a fee of $10 per propeller to boat registrations in support of milfoil treatment programs. On a motion from Carr, the board voted unanimously to find some way to raise the
$5,009.90 needed to treat the river next year.