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Friends of Kawba Watershed asks Town of Wayne for small budget increase to fight aquatic invasive species
Summary
A Watershed group requested a $1,800 town contribution for boat-inspection and early-detection work after a new invasive species was found in the broader watershed; the budget committee acknowledged the request and noted it is included in the proposed budget.
Jennifer, a representative of Friends of the Kawba Watershed and the Dexter–Wilson Watershed Association, told the Town of Wayne budget committee on April 8 that the watershed groups are hiring courtesy boat inspectors and plant survey teams for 2025 to prevent and detect aquatic invasive species in uninfested ponds in the watershed.
The group asked the town to increase its annual contribution from $1,500 in 2024 to $1,800 for 2025 to support prevention and early-detection efforts on Berry, Dexter and Wilson ponds. Jennifer said the money would pay for paid staff and for additional work responding to a new infestation discovered in 2024.
"We are hiring a staff of 30 courtesy boat inspectors," Jennifer said, describing weekend coverage of public launches from Memorial Day to Labor Day and an expanded team of plant surveyors and plant-control crew members. She listed four aquatic invasive species of concern in the watershed: variable leaf milfoil, Eurasian watermilfoil, European frogbit and swollen bladderwort, and said swollen bladderwort was discovered in July 2024 on Pleasant Pond.
Shannon, a town staff member who presented the budget packet, acknowledged the request and said the $1,800 line is already included in the town's draft budget materials. "I can see that we've got that $1,800 right now in that order," Shannon said during the meeting.
The watershed representative said the organizations will coordinate with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection for any management actions required when surveys find suspect plants.
The budget committee did not hold a separate recorded vote on the contribution during the meeting; committee members discussed the request as part of the outside-agencies and health-and-human-services portions of the draft budget.
