Archive: Around Town

For the past two years, the Hydrilla Task Force of Cayuga Lake has been monitoring a line of small but thriving hydrilla plants anchored in shallow water just offshore of Ithaca's Stewart Park in Cayuga Lake. On August 13 (rain date August 14), the US Army Corps of Engineers hydrilla team for Cayuga Lake will oversee the targeted treatment of these plants using the aquatic herbicide Komeen Crystal.

Led by Regional Technical Specialist Michael Greer of the US Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District, the team will work with Solitude Lake Management to apply the herbicide directly to the the plants, in a water depth of about three feet with a surface area of 4 acres. This action is expected to take approximately 2 hours to complete. Please see accompanying map.

At no time will the herbicide concentration exceed safe water use standards for humans, wildlife, or fish. The use of lake water as a source of drinking water is not recommended at any time. Residents should be aware that the application concentration of 1 part per million of copper is close to the drinking water action level of 1.3 parts per million. To ensure full public confidence, water quality will be tested regularly over a 72 hour period following application. Additional tests will be made at the Bolton Point Water Plant.

The Corps and Task Force hope that this single treatment will finish off this threat to the shallow waters at the south end of Cayuga Lake. Uncontrolled, hydrilla could quickly spread to fill the south end with a thick mat of dense plant growth that would inhibit boating, paddling, fishing and native species.

According to Tompkins County Soil and Water Conservation District's Jon Negley, "Continued monitoring of any future plant growth will dictate any future control options pursued by the Task Force."

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