Advocate III
CLEAN, DRAIN, & DRY
Do you take a canoe or kayak along when adventuring?
Caring for our waterways is just as important as caring for our trails, roads, and back country camping spots.
If you've ever seen how choked some ponds and lakes get with an invasive species like non-native Milfoils--often introduced from watercraft going from one body of water to another without being properly cleaned--you'll know it can quickly take over an entire body of water, literally choking out animal and other plant life.
Invasive aquatic plants like non-native Milfoil can often propagate from fragmentation. That means that when a propeller, kayak paddle, or even a fishing lure is dragged through and disturbs a cluster of invasive Milfoil, each fragment broken off is capable of forming an entire new plant. In lakes I frequent, divers go down, locate, and set buoys marking locations of invasive species. Then state-certified removal divers come to gather and remove it. It's an ongoing and endless endeavor.
Other non-native organisms, from Zebra Mussels, to predatory fish, to pathogens have become problematic in many bodies of water.
With the dramatic increase in outdoor recreation lately, especially among folks new to the outdoors, it is increasingly important to help others understand the importance of caring properly for our outdoor resources.
Here's more from the USDA: What Are Invasive Species?
Please read the poster. If you find it helpful and important, please save and share it with others.
It's important to understand how easily we can unknowingly spread invasive species and how easy it is to help stop the spread:
Clean, Drain, & Dry: a poster from the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFTC)
Do you take a canoe or kayak along when adventuring?
Caring for our waterways is just as important as caring for our trails, roads, and back country camping spots.
If you've ever seen how choked some ponds and lakes get with an invasive species like non-native Milfoils--often introduced from watercraft going from one body of water to another without being properly cleaned--you'll know it can quickly take over an entire body of water, literally choking out animal and other plant life.
Invasive aquatic plants like non-native Milfoil can often propagate from fragmentation. That means that when a propeller, kayak paddle, or even a fishing lure is dragged through and disturbs a cluster of invasive Milfoil, each fragment broken off is capable of forming an entire new plant. In lakes I frequent, divers go down, locate, and set buoys marking locations of invasive species. Then state-certified removal divers come to gather and remove it. It's an ongoing and endless endeavor.
Other non-native organisms, from Zebra Mussels, to predatory fish, to pathogens have become problematic in many bodies of water.
With the dramatic increase in outdoor recreation lately, especially among folks new to the outdoors, it is increasingly important to help others understand the importance of caring properly for our outdoor resources.
Here's more from the USDA: What Are Invasive Species?
Please read the poster. If you find it helpful and important, please save and share it with others.
It's important to understand how easily we can unknowingly spread invasive species and how easy it is to help stop the spread:
Clean, Drain, & Dry: a poster from the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFTC)
