Indianas funding needs and goals under this grant focuses on coordination of aquatic invasive species (AIS) activities by the indiana AIS coordinator as well as providing additional funds supporting…

This $156,453 federal Project Grant award under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (CFDA 15.662) will support the Indiana Department of Natural Resources' (IDNR) efforts to coordinate aquatic invasive species (AIS) activities in the state. The grant funding will be used to: 1) Develop and distribute AIS prevention materials in partnership with national and regional entities, 2) Increase staff time for AIS awareness, control, prevention and regional coordination, and 3) Begin treatment of high-priority AIS plants such as purple loosestrife and phragmites on IDNR-owned properties in the Great Lakes basin. This grant will build on previous GLRI funding that has slowed the spread of starry stonewort in Indiana. The award period is from October 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026.

Indianas funding needs and goals under this grant focuses on coordination of aquatic invasive species (AIS) activities by the indiana AIS coordinator as well as providing additional funds supporting aquatic invasive species outreach and communication efforts, AIS plant control projects on waters wetlands within the great lakes basin as well as the suppression, control and research into high priority aquatic invasive plants especially starry stonewort.first goal is to continue to work with national and regional partners to develop and distribute AIS prevention materials that include national campaigns such as stop aquatic hitchhikers and habitattitude. Through the funding of staff specifically focusing on aquatic invasive species awareness, control, prevention and regional coordination. We have been actively engaged with the great lakes AIS landing blitz in over the last couple years. Indiana DNR is proposing to increase staff time from property staff fisheries staff and support the citizen scientist-based efforts to build on community participation and lake association based AIS prevention activities 2024 is underway and looking like a very successful year and 2025 should show significant progress. The secondary goal of this funding the clear necessity to efficiently address aquatic invasive plant species at high use department of natural resources owned properties within the great lakes basin. These properties through active management hope to reduce and eventually eliminate invasives species in order to restore the habitat to a diverse native plant community. Funding is requested to begin treatment in 2025 on multiple areas on fish wildlife and nature preserve areas to address and lead to the dramatic decrease in purple loosestrife and the elimination of phragmites. Well established AIS plants are found on waters and wetlands that LIE within the great lakes drainage and they are having a tremendous impact on the aquatic plant diversity and recreational opportunities. DNR and lake association budgets have often been insufficient in the past to control these species and they have spread, often unchecked, throughout the waters and wetlands. The third goal of this requested additional glri support through this grant funding application is to support the increased investment in early season SSW suppression and control in the 2025 treatment season. Previous fiscal years of glri funding especially of our treatments and the research into the effectiveness of control methods have slowed the spread within indiana and within individual lakes while we contribute to the understanding of this plant. Indianas AIS program has clearly set our priorities on the control of aquatic invasive plant species in the last few years. IT is well known that prevention of the introduction of an invasive species is by far the most economical and preferred goal. This funding has been critical and continues to be needed because IT provides funding for invasive plant mapping, herbicide application, pre and post plant sampling associated with treatments, and most importantly funding for the state of indianas AIS program to have a contract in place with a state certified aquatic plant applicator company in the local community that has a decade of experience identifying and treating SSW and other high priority AIS plant species.