Starry Stonewort Update - March 2025
Ongoing efforts to find/control
Excerpted from email from Tony Coffey March 2025
A major focus for the near term and the coming months is the starry stonewort issue on Rush Lake. Pat Loban, WAPOA Secretary, spearheaded an effort to apply for a $35,000 grant from the Laura Jane Musser Fund to assist with our SSW treatment and prevention efforts in 2025. We gathered a team comprised of Pat Loban, Kay Rezanka, Michael Duncan, Anne Mootz, and me to put together the required information for the grant. A number of you also contributed to the effort. Thank you all for assisting in this important project, with a special note of appreciation to Pat Loban for all the time and effort she put into getting the grant complete and on time.
The DNR is aware of the submitted plan and agrees with the general outline of the plan. Exact treatments such as hand pulling and chemicals will be determined after the initial surveys of the area are completed. We received very compelling letters of support from Jon Lubke, CWC Commissioner, Jackson Purfeerst, Crosslake Mayor, Jon Mobeck, NLC, and Kay Rezanka. The DNR does not permit letters of recommendation. However, Richard Rezanka sent a wonderful “thank you” letter outlining the Fall 2024 effort, and positive anticipation for the 2025 efforts. The grant will be awarded in July, so we have a few months until we know if we will get the funding. However, in the meantime, the effort to gather the information has produced a very robust potential plan for this year’s SSW effort.
(As an aside, at a Northern Stop Starry meeting yesterday, coordinated by MLR, Bill Grantjes (AIS Coordinator for Itasca SWCD), cited our efforts last fall as the “gold standard” for a rapid response to a newly found infestation of SSW.)
The project timeline developed for the grant application gives us a relatively detailed outline of what we can consider doing in 2025 at the Rush Lake site and for Chain wide prevention (project budget is attached):
March 2025: Starry Stonewort Response Team determines outline for Rush Lake Channel SSW 2025 treatment plan.
April 15 – May 15, 2025: MN DNR Certified AIS divers do underwater survey of Rush Lake Channel infestation.
1. Divers survey designated area of Rush Lake Channel – approximately 3.0 acres.
2. Laboratory testing of algae determines proper chemical treatment.
3. Deploy AIS warning buoys at designated area.
4. Coordinate purchase and installation with the DNR and Crow Wing County on SSW warning signage for 6 public landings and 12 right of way accesses on the WFC.
May 15 – October 15, 2025: Rush Lake Channel SSW treatment/containment plan. (Exact dates TBD)
1. Deploy silt fence barrier around designated area
2. Qualified Diver SSW hand pulling
3. Chemical treatment – first application designated area
4. Chemical treatment - second application designated area
5. Qualified Diver survey of designated area
6. Chemical treatment - third application designated area
7. Chemical treatment - fourth application designated area
8. Qualified Diver survey of designated area
July 2025: PLM Lake Management aquatic plant surveys 40 – 60 sites on WFC and surrounding lakes.
August 2025: Diver assisted professional plant surveys at landings and specific sites.
September 2025: PLM Lake Management aquatic plant surveys 40 – 60 sites on WFC and surrounding lakes.
October 2025:
1. PLM Lake Management aquatic plant surveys on designated sites as determined by Starry Stonewort Response Team.
2. Removal of silt fence barrier and AIS warning buoys
November 2025: Review of 2025 Project and recommendations for Projects 2026 and beyond.
As you can see, this is an ambitious and extensive program. It will require ongoing approvals by the Executive Committee and the Board. But the team believes that this is the correct course to take to treat and prevent the spread of SSW in the Chain and to surrounding lakes.
Messaging and communications will be a very important part of this effort. Between this project and the various activities coming up this spring and early summer, we will be very busy. We all know folks that share our mission. Please ask them to help us by volunteering to staff the various booths at the Senior Expo, Antique Boat Show, and the Loon and Lakes Festival.