Boaters and Marina Owners Key to Hydrilla Fight
Cayuga Lake boaters and marina owners are a key link in stopping the spread of hydrilla. Print and post the information for boaters (438 pdf) and Not Wanted!. Marina staff can make their customers aware of what to look for as they travel to their own home docks or other water bodies. Help by following and providing advice regarding transport and storage of boats. Consider building a simple plant disposal station.
- Boats should be cleaned before they go in the water.
- Boats coming in on trailers need to have the trailer carefully washed and inspected, looking especially for material trapped between the boat and trailer and for open tubing on the trailers.
- Remove and dispose of all vegetation in a trash can or above high water
- Take boats to the nearest car wash for a good cleaning
- For long-term shortage:
- Leave boats and trailers in conditions where any hidden and unremoved plants will completely dry and/or freeze over the winter.
- Engine water should be purged, perhaps with a garden hose, before being winterized
- Bilges, drop keels, and anything else on the boats that can retain water should be drained and dried, or cleaned w/ soap or a bleach solution.
- Boat yards should set up silt curtains or hay bales, or something similar to let the water filter off while capturing any plant material, and to avoid draining directly back into waterbodies.
- If the boat yard is doing repairs and has to repeatedly put the boat in and out of the water, lifts and trailer equipment should be checked each time.
- Marina staff should consider participating in invasive species identification training sessions so they can spot any hydrilla - and to institute some monitoring periodically throughout the boating season to provide early detection. Check upcoming events to learn more about hydrilla.
Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillatum) is a new exotic plant that has recently been found in the Cayuga Inlet. This plant is very aggressive and can create significant ecological and economic problems if allowed to spread to Cayuga Lake and the rest of the Finger Lakes region, although at present it has not been found to have spread outside of the Inlet area.
As part of a prevention and containment strategy, the Cayuga Inlet Hydrilla Task Force is promoting safe boating and cleaning measures to avoid moving the hydrilla out of the infested areas and into uninfested waterbodies. Here's how marina owners can help
NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) provided the following materials to marina owners so that can assist in preventing the spread of hydrilla into and out of the Inlet and other susceptible areas. ( For more information visit the DEC website.)
(1) laminated handout that provides some images of the plants found in the Cayuga Inlet, and some key features distinguishing this plant from common lookalikes
(2) brochures produced by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) to help boaters to stop the spread of invasives- these can be provided to boaters and other marina customers.
(3) laminated posters advising boaters and other visitors about the presence of hydrilla in the Cayuga Inlet, and steps that boaters can take to prevent the spread of this invasive plant.
View the letter sent to marian owners.
