As the weather and water get colder and many of our citizen science programs come to an end for the season, I start sifting through all the data we’ve collected over the summer months and reflecting on all we accomplished. Every year, I am filled with gratitude for our volunteers who labor in the name of protecting our lands and waters. I think it’s safe to say they do this out of love.

What else would drive these folks to plunge their hands into October-chilled sea water to take nitrogen samples? Or face down the occasional leech to wade – much less swim – in Biscay Pond to search for invasive plants? Or pick their way around patches of poison ivy to document shoreline erosion caused by increasing storm events? Or stare through a microscope for three or four hours at a stretch, as our phytoplankton monitoring volunteers do? (…)

An ounce of prevention Aquatic invasive plants are very good at spreading from one fresh water body to another by “hitchhiking” on boats and trailers. And they are considered “invasive” for a reason. Just a small piece of milfoil, for example, can spread throughout an entire lake or pond. Once these plants are established, they are almost impossible to remove. They spread rapidly and form dense mats near the surface of the water, blocking sunlight, crowding out native plants, and creating poor habitat for fish, diving birds, and other forms of wildlife. Not to mention getting in the way of …

Combatting invasives through Courtesy Boat Inspections Read More »