New York Invasive Species Newsroom
NYS DEC Giant Hogweed Control Program Seeks Qualified Seasonal Staff
DEC Forest Health and Protection is looking to hire up to 12 people to control giant hogweed plants (an invasive plant
that can pose a serious health threat to humans) throughout central and western NY on private and public lands. These
five month positions will start April 26, 2010, and will be located out of one of several Regional DEC offices in
Regions 7, 8 and 9 (Allegany, Avon, Bath, Cortland, Reinstein Woods [Depew], West Almond).
Six positions are available for the chemical control program. This control method involves applying herbicide to
giant hogweed plants at sites 0.6 acres to 5.5 acres in size. The Department is looking for two NY State Certified
Commercial Pesticide Applicators (hired as labor supervisors) and four NY State Certified Commercial Technicians.
Six positions are available for the manual control program. This control method involves cutting through the root
5" below the soil which kills the plant completely. Root cutting is recommended for sites with less than 200 plants
as a very effective, though labor intensive, control method.
Positions available are for Labor Supervisors, Forestry Technicians 1, or Laborers, depending on qualifications.
Positions available (click on position title to see full job description):
For further information contact Naja Kraus at DEC’s central office: nekraus@gw.dec.state.ny.us
Invasive Forest Insect Pests in New York State DVD
(February 2010.) The American Wildlife Conservation Foundation (a partner in the Capital-Mohawk PRISM) has produced a
forest pests DVD, "Invasive Forest Insect Pests in New York State". 1,000 copies have been made, most of
which will be distributed through a training with the Warren County Soil & Water Conservation District. Additional copies
will be available for a nominal fee to offset the cost of producing the DVDs. For those readers with broadband web connections,
clicking here will allow you to view the DVD Invasive Forest Insect Pests in New York State.
[Warning: this is a 230Mb file.] Your media viewing software (such as Microsoft Media Player) should allow you to save the file
to your hard drive allowing you to view the video off-line.
For more information, contact: Peg Sauer, leader of the Capital-Mohawk PRISM.
NYSDEC Comments to US Coast Guard on Need for Stronger Ballast Water Discharge Regulations
(December 3, 2009.) The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation ("the Department"),
took the opportunity to review and provide comments on the U.S. Coast Guard's proposed
"Standards for Living Organisms in Ship's Ballast Water Discharged into U.S. Waters" (U.S. Coast
Guard 2009b). The Department provided the written comments for consideration, in addition to the oral testimony
presented by staff at the October 29, 2009 public meeting in New York City (NYSDEC 2009), and the
December 3, 2009 letter signed by Assistant Commissioner James Tierney on behalf of several states. The establishment of a strong,
environmentally protective, concentration-based numerical national ballast water discharge standard is a
critical and necessary component ofthe nation's invasive species programs. The goal of these programs
is to prevent the introduction of invasive species, a form of biological pollution, to provide for their
control, and to minimize the economic, ecological, and human health impacts that invasive species cause.
While the Department stated that the development of national standards has taken longer than would be ideal, the Department
stated that NYS is pleased that a proposed standard has been made publicly available.
Although the Department noted that the Coast Guard has chosen to establish a concentration-based
numerical discharge standard as a replacement for ballast water exchange and flushing, the Department stated that the Coast
Guard's proposed phase-one numerical standard, equivalent to the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) D-2 ballast
water discharge standard is far too weak, providing only minor to moderate reductions in introductions of invasive species.
The Department believes a more environmentally protective
standard than the IMO D-2 standard proposed, such as 100 times IMO, is needed and that the Coast Guard needs to increase the
implementation schedule to a timeline that is not only
responsive to the urgency of the problem but also consistent with existing state requirements. The 100 x
IMO standard is the most protective of the three phase-one alternatives presented in the proposed rule. The Department
favors regulations similar to New York State's 401 certification to the EPA VGP which requires existing vessels to
install ballast water treatment technology that meet a discharge standard of 100 x IMO by 2012 and 1000
x IMO for new vessels beginning 2013.
The Department stressed the need for active coordination between the Coast Guard and the US EPA
in regulating ballast water discharges in U.S. waters to protect water quality and the natural resources that
depend on these aquatic ecosystems. The Department stated that the national program to control ballast water discharges from
vessels must actively engage both agencies and fully comply with both National Invasive Species Act and the Clean Waters Act.
Click here to read NYSDEC's full comments on the Coast Guard Ballast Water Discharge Proposed Rulemaking.
DEC Pushes for Ballast Rules for Oceangoing Ships
(August 7, 2009.) With a new invasive species discovered almost every six months in the Great Lakes, New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis is calling on federal officials to close
a loophole that has fueled the problem.
An exemption to the federal Clean Water Act effectively allows ocean-going ships to dump ballast water in American's inland
waters, bringing aquatic invaders from zebra mussels to lampreys to the ruffe to the round goby. This has rapidly harmed the
ecology of U.S. waters, especially the Great Lakes. Grannis encouraged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to take
action to force ships to clean out their ballast tanks before entering the nation's waterways.
"Invasive species compete with, prey upon and substantially alter the environment of our native species of plants, fish and wildlife,"
Grannis said in comments to the EPA in the wake of a multi-state lawsuit to force closer monitoring of oceangoing ships. "These invasive
species have a devastating effect, not only on the environment, but also on the economy. They have hurt recreational and commercial
fishing, as well as tainted water supplies and hindered energy production. We now know that ballast-water discharges from oceangoing
vessels are the main source of ongoing, increasing introductions of invasive species to U.S. waters."
Historically, oceangoing ships have been exempted from requirements of the Clean Water Act, which require permits for discharges into
water bodies. Instead, current regulations allow ships to simply pledge that they have flushed ballast water (used to balance cargo)
before entering inland waters. Yet studies show that large ships carry and discharge billions of gallons of ballast in the Great
Lakes each year. Ballast water discharges from oceangoing vessels are the main source of invasive species to U.S. waters. New studies
show invasive species discovered in the Great Lakes at a rate of one every 28 weeks - 185 invaders, so far, and counting.
Last year, a federal court said the exemption for ships should be halted, ruling in favor of New York and other states that had filed a
multi-state lawsuit. In its decision, the U.S. District Court for Northern California said ``there is no dispute'' that invasive species
have entered the U.S. marine ecosystem through ballast discharges. The court ordered the exemption ended by Sept. 30, 2008. EPA has
appealed. But in the meantime, it has asked for comments for a potential new regulation regarding discharges. Monday (Aug. 6, 2007)
was the deadline for comments.
Several states have begun developing ballast regulations. But Grannis said the ideal approach would be for EPA to write uniform ballast
regulations for all the states. Among the recommendations, Grannis said the EPA should require mandatory flushing of ballast water
prior to entering inland waters. Moreover, national guidelines would alleviate a concern by commercial fishermen and other small
craft owners that the lawsuit potentially forces them to follow the same mandates as oceangoing ships.
DEC developed the response for New York in consultation with the state Attorney General's office. "EPA needs to develop a
comprehensive rule as soon as possible," Grannis said. "Such a rule is long overdue and is of critical importance for the protection
of native habitat throughout the nation."
Click here to read DEC's full comments on the proposed
USEPA ballast-water rulemaking.
Invasive mysid shrimp species Hemimysis anomala (the “bloody red shrimp”) found in Oneida Lake, NY.
(August 20, 2009.) Researchers at Cornell University Biological Field Station announced that the invasive mysid shrimp Hemimysis anomala
(also known as the “bloody red shrimp”) has been found in the diet of a white perch taken from Oneida Lake, NY. Fish diet
assessments are part of routine monitoring of the Oneida Lake fishery conducted with support of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation.
Thirteen individuals (5 males, 8 females, 6 to 8 mm long) were found in the white perch’s diet. As far as we know, this is the first
introduction of this species in an inland lake outside of the Great Lakes.
More information on this finding…
 |
Hemimysis taken from the diet of an Oneida Lake white perch
(Photo: Cornell University Biological Field Station) |
EMERALD ASH BORER (Agrilus Planipennis) confirmed in New York State
(June 17, 2009) The Emerald Ash Borer, or EAB (Agrilus Planipennis) has been positively identified for the first time in NYS in an ash tree from a
location near Randolph, in western Cattaraugus County. The specimens were recovered from infested trees at a highway interchange by ARS researchers out
of Ithaca, New York who were traveling through the area and checked the trees that appeared damaged. The trees appear to have been infested for some time.
Rick Hoebeke of the Cornell University Department of Entomology made the initial determination and forwarded the specimen to the USDA-ARS Systematic
Entomology Laboratory for final official identification.
Read the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation & NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets
EAB Press Release.
Dec and Partners to Track Possible Spread of Invasive Beetle
Emerald Ash Borer Traps are Being Deployed Throughout the State
ALBANY, NY (June 5, 2009) - The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), along with other federal and state agencies, is setting
baited traps in ash trees across upstate New York in an effort to search for possible infestations of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), a tree-killing
beetle. The public will soon be seeing the purple prism traps deployed in treelines throughout New York, with a concentration in areas adjacent to
neighboring states and Canadian provinces that have already detected this potentially devastating invasive species.
It has been documented that a main route that enables this insect, as well as other invasive species, to spread is from moving firewood from one place to another.
That is why in 2008, New York adopted regulations that ban untreated firewood from entering the state and restricts intrastate movement of untreated firewood
to no more than a 50-mile radius from its source (Information on firewood movement regulations).
New York has more than 900 million ash trees, representing about 7 percent of all trees in the state, and all are at risk should this invasive, exotic pest
become established. Many communities are at particular risk because ash was widely planted as a street tree after Dutch elm disease killed many urban trees.
Read the full press release
Attorney General Cuomo Announces Environmental Victory for Great Lakes and Other New York Waterways Regarding Invasive Species
ALBANY, N.Y. (May 29, 2009) - Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced another victory in his efforts to protect New York state waterways from
environmental damage caused by the dumping of contaminated ballast water by large commercial ships.
New York State Supreme Court Justice Hon. Robert A. Sackett agreed with the state of New York and dismissed a challenge to permit requirements
issued by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation designed to control discharges of invasive species to the Great Lakes and
other waterways by ocean-going vessels. Specifically, the court rejected the arguments of a coalition of large shipping interests claiming that
the state had illegally placed further restrictions on a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nationwide discharge permit for these vessels.
Read the press release
Read the petition and denial