Invasive Plants Council
Minutes
February 10, 2004

Present: Dr. Anderson, Mr. Goodwin, Comm. Gresczyk , Mr. Larson, Comm. Leff, , Dr. Musgrave, Mr. Sutherland, Mr. McGowan

Absent: Dr. Mehrhoff

The Meeting was called to order at 10:06 AM by Chairman Leff in Room 1B of the Legislative Office Building.

Chairman Leff had the members of the council introduce themselves to members and the audience.

There was a motion by Mr. Goodwin to approve the minutes of January 29, 2004. Dr. Anderson suggested changing the word “cellular” to “molecular.” The motion was seconded by Mr. Larson. The minutes were adopted as amended by voice vote.

Gregory Bugbee from the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station gave a presentation about efforts at the experiment station to control invasive weeds in lakes. He stated that most invasive plant problems in lakes are caused by people planting the plants close to the lake or by boat trailers spreading the weeds from lake to lake.

They have worked on Variable-leaf watermilfoil in Bashan Lake in East Haddam. They have had success with using herbicide in the water. They have also worked on Fanwort in Lake Quamipaug in Guilford. There they used mechanical removal techniques and found that the weeds grew back the following season very well. They have also done work on the Moodus Reservoir.

Dr. Jason White from the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station gave a presentation on techniques to control invasives in lakes. The possible options are; sediment control, water level draw down, harvesting, biological control, putting down a bottom barriers, and herbicides.

They have focused their work on herbicides. They are working on using minimal amounts of herbicides. After applications they conduct tests to find out how much herbicide is present in the water. They obtain Dr. White discussed two herbicides (2, 4-D) and (Fluridone). 2,4-D is effective especially in the Ester formulation. It kills plants in 2-4 weeks. Fluridone disrupts photosynthesis and takes longer to work. It is used in much smaller concentrations for longer periods of time so it has its benefits. Mr. Goodwin asked about cost. 2,4-D is about $200 an acre. Fluridone costs about $1600 an acre. Dr. Musgrave asked about the impact on fish and Dr. White explained that they have found no evidence of them accumulating in fish.

Dr. Charles Vossbrinck from the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station spoke on identification processes for invasive plants. He uses DNA sequencing to identify two genes. Once the plant is isolated the information is deposited in Genbank. Mr. Larson asked about the time table for identification and Dr. Vossbrinck explained that it is usually less than three days.

Finalization of Invasive Plant List:

Dr. Musgrave and Mr. Sutherland presented language for the cover of the report. Chairman Leff suggested adding a sentence to explain what invasive plants are. There was discussion and the consensus was that this sentence was not needed.

There was a motion by Dr. Anderson to finalize the list with the cover language presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. McGowan. The motion carried on a voice vote.

Chairman Leff began a discussion of the Ban List with asking if anyone was interested in having public hearings. Mr. Goodwin thought that having public hearings would be a good thing. Mr. Sutherland thought that since the legislature would have to ban the plants, they would have public hearings. Chairman Leff suggested having industry (Aquatic Plants) people come in to explain the economic impact of banning aquatics.

Municipal pre-emption: There was a discussion about the sunset provision in the current statute. Mr. Sutherland asked about the council’s earlier discussion of how the pre-emption impacts local land use commissions. Chairman Leff suggested that the council consider recommending to the legislature that the sunset be delayed for a year. There was a motion by Dr. Anderson to recommend changing the deadline to the end of session next year. The motion was seconded by Mr. Goodwin. The motion carried on a voice vote.

Chairman Leff suggested that he come up with a draft report to the Environment Committee. There also should be a letter to state agencies explaining the invasive list. The council came to a consensus that the report should contain lists of speakers heard, the invasive plant list and the following recommendations:
1. Funding for Publishing of Council Lists
2. DEP Fund for emergency response
3. Authorize the Department of Agriculture to investigate pet shops for selling invasive plants
4. Change the Date of the Sunset in current law
5. Change the language of current law to say “transplant” instead of move and delete “possess.”

Mr. Sutherland suggested this report should include a status report on the progress of producing a ban list. Mr. Goodwin and Mr. Larson agreed. Mr. McGowan suggested the council look at the fine issue. This needs to be clarified. Chairman Leff noted that the courts will interpret this issue. Mr. McGowan said maybe the council could express their confusion on the fine issue in the report to the Environment Committee. There was no consensus on this issue. Chairman Leff explained that he would develop a draft report and distribute it to the members of the council so they could submit corrections and suggestions before the next meeting.

There was a motion to adjourn by Dr. Anderson. The motion was seconded by Mr. McGowan. The meeting was adjourned at 11:44 AM.

Respectfully Submitted,

Emanuel Merisotis
Clerk- Environment Committee