The Kenai Peninsula Borough has been able to use leftover federal monies to quickly assist with the Elodea recently found in Anchorage’s Lake Hood, the busiest float-plane lake in the state.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Biologist John Morton said borough administration was able to help because of the unexpected success and savings of herbicide treatments in Nikiski’s three lakes.
Morton: “They realized that we could eradicate Elodea off of the Kenai Peninsula but have it immediately reintroduced from Lake Hood. So it’s not a far cry for the borough to help out in this particular case and that’s exactly what they did. So they modified the grant they got for the state, the $400,000, which allowed them to purchase herbicide product for Lake Hood.”
The herbicide was purchased by the borough and is on the way to Alaska where it will wait to treat Lake Hood.
Morton said there are a couple of hitches holding up a quick response to keep Elodea from spreading.
Morton: “So you have National Environmental Policy Act which involves federal dollars and that’s a thirty day public review and then the other piece is to get a permit from the Department of Environmental Conservation which also involves a thirty day review at least, if not more.”
As we previously reported, multiple agencies are coordinating to implement the last treatment to Nikiski’s Beck, Daniels, and Stormy Lakes and officials were already concerned about Elodea being reintroduced.
Morton said as for pilots using their planes to travel throughout the state, the simplest way to avoid introducing the invasive species to to check for it on equipment.