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Commission asks staff for fuller review of pond invasive‑plant management; will consider grant support and presentation at next meeting
Summary
Commissioners asked staff to present a costed, phased plan for managing invasive aquatic vegetation across city ponds after a pilot at Popleton Creek showed partial success for a combined strategy of spot removal, targeted spraying and native plantings.
Commissioners asked staff Monday to return with a fuller presentation on municipal pond management after a consultant’s pilot study found mixed results from a mix of mechanical removal, targeted spraying and native planting.
Joe Giulio (Gillio), identified in discussion as working with lake‑management efforts and the Lake Okeechobee Restoration Initiative, explained a small pilot at Popleton Creek where the city used three 75‑foot perimeter test sections to trial different approaches: manual removal, herbicide application by the city’s contractor and a third area where native plantings were used to compete with invasive species. Giulio said the planted natives did not fully overtake the exotics in the trial and recommended a combined approach of selective spraying or manual removal paired with additional native plantings and ongoing monitoring.
Commissioners and staff discussed costs and logistics. Public Works has performed spot treatments and limited manual removals, but commissioners said a comprehensive approach would require budgetary decisions: city staff said a full manual removal program across all ponds would be expensive (staff reported bids for comprehensive manual removal were in the hundreds of thousands of dollars) and that the current approach was a mix of limited spraying and spot mechanical work.
Commissioner Gioby asked staff to place a fuller presentation on a future agenda that would include: (1) the costs and frequency of contractor herbicide applications to date; (2) estimates for manual removal across priority ponds; (3) a phased planting program for native shoreline vegetation; and (4) grant opportunities and staff recommendations for funding such an effort. City staff said they will coordinate with the lake‑management contractor to compile treatment histories and cost estimates and will place an item on the Feb. 10, 2025 commission meeting to consider a support letter if a grant application is ready.
The discussion closed with staff agreeing to present options, costs and a recommended phased approach. Commissioners said they wanted the presentation to include the long‑term maintenance implications and tradeoffs between more frequent herbicide application versus manual removal plus native plant restoration.
