Beaver Island is State Wide Leader in Phragmites Eradication

[Chamber of Commerce]

Page 3 feature in the July 2 issue of Charlevoix Courier

By Elaine West Special to the Courier

There is no doubt about it: Beaver Island has become a state leader in tackling Phragmites, an invasive reed grass that threatens Michiganâ??s shorelines and a host of native plants and animals.

A joint township public hearing was held on June 24 to discuss the proposed Beaver Island Pragmites Ordinance, a measure designed to allow the townships to treat the invasive flora without first having to gather costly and time-consuming individual permission slips from property owners, and also to give shoreline owners a means to discuss proposed treatment with township officials.

â??In a nutshell, weâ??re trying to create a process for more effective treatment,â?￾ said Bryan Graham, attorney for both St. James and Peaine Townships.

The invasive was first identified approximately five years ago by environmental activist and island resident Pam Grassmick.

The Phragmites quickly began their lifeâ??s mission, doing what invasive grasses do best: growing into 12-foot high, thick, bamboo-like stands on the shoreline. The invasive grass strangled all native plants in their immediate vicinity.

Grassmick enlisted the support of local property owners group the Beaver Island Association (BIA), both townships, and the advice and assistance of Michigan DNR biologist Brian Mastenbrook.

Two years of community education began with a video produced for shoreline owners, Web site information on the invasive, and numerous articles in the island publications.

In the summer of 2007, the war against Phragmites began in earnest.

Mastenbrook worked with the MDEQ to acquire an island-wide permit for herbicidal treatment.

Funding was acquired in large part through donations by island property owners.

The townships, BIA and Grassmick took leadership roles in organizing for the treatment, and finally a contractor, Superior Environmental Aquatic Services (SEAS) was hired.

Last fall, the SEAS crew treated 397 different sites on the island, some single plants just gaining a foothold, others mature stands of Phragmites.

A recent inspection of the treated areas showed a high kill rate.

â??It looks 95-plus percent effective,â?￾ said Mastenbrook. â??It was a very, very good job.â?￾

Other communities in Michigan are just becoming aware of this invasive and its threat to shorelines.

In the Saginaw Bay area they have resorted to herbicidal spraying by helicopters because of the density of the stands.

Wildlife and environmental experts from around the state are extremely interested in how Beaver Island has dealt with the situation and made such progress with their rapid response. Grassmick has been asked to be a consultant for the Traverse City area, which is preparing to wage their own war on this invasive. As for Beaver Island, they are gearing up for this yearâ??s assault.

â??Weâ??ve been through round one, round two is going to take place this fall,â?￾ Mastenbrook said. â??If we keep up on this, we wonâ??t be spraying 27 acres ever again.â?￾

Knowing that Phragmites can arrive via Lake Michiganâ??s waves and re-infest an area, groundwork is being laid to also treat High and Garden, two outer islands in the Beaver Archipelago.

A grant of $23,000 has been acquired from the Fish and Wildlife Service to treat the two islands.

A GPS survey of all three islands also will take place this summer.

This fallâ??s follow-up treatment on Beaver Island will be funded mostly through additional donations from property owners.

Knowing that this battle will require vigilance and repeated treatments for some time, the township boards will be discussing options for funding to be continued, perhaps becoming a line item on annual budgets.

Officials from both township boards pledged their ongoing support in this matter.

â??I look at this as not only eradication, but education as well,â?￾ said Peaine Township Supervisor John Works Jr.

As the public hearing concluded, Grassmick was given a hearty round of applause from the large crowd.

â??We should make you our Citizen of the Year,â?￾ joked Works.

The audience joined in his laughter with good reason. In May of 2008, Grassmick received that particular honor from a grateful island community.