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Huron Pines awarded $335K for species eradication efforts

GRAYLING — More than $3.5 million in grants was awarded last week in an effort to eradicate invasive species in Michigan in the third year of grant letting.

One recipient was Grayling-based Huron Pines, which works to eliminate invasive species of weeds, among other activities, in Alpena, Montmorency, Alcona and Presque Isle counties.

The grants were issued by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development according to representative Joanne Foreman.

According to a press release, Huron Pines will use the funding to facilitate the expansion of work completed in the Northeast Michigan Cooperative Weed Management Area in working with landowners, local communities and regional partners to detect, treat and prevent the spread of invasive species.

Foreman said since the grant program was established three years ago, there has been evidence that work is helping to eliminate invasive plants from the state.

“The first round of funding recipients, they are just now winding up our grants, and we’re just now getting numbers and information,” she said. “We’ll have a lot more information on the metrics of the funding soon.”

Foreman said a lot of the grant money is going to groups like Huron Pines, which then enlists volunteers to seek out areas in the state where there are numbers of invasive plant species.

“Beyond just finding (the plants) the second step then is being able to compile that information and determine where are the most necessary areas that need to be treated for these invasive species,” she said.

Foreman said it would be great if there was unlimited funding to give to organizations, but there isn’t. She said organizations like Huron Pines work with other organizations, like the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

She said Huron Pines, for example, has been good with stretching grant funding in the three years of the program.

“People think that $335,000 sounds like a lot but really when you consider the pervasiveness of invasive species in the state it’s a drop in the bucket,” she said.

She said the educational arm of the organizations, teaching the public what the invasive species are and how to get rid of them, are important, as it informs the public how to do it safely without the possible accidental spread of the plants.

“For example, Japanese knotweed, if you cut it down it sort of gets motivated to spread further,” she said. “The roots get energized and will spread further out.”

One thing to be on the lookout for in the future, according to Foreman, is the presence of invasive carp into Michigan waterways. She said it is the greatest invasive species threat to the state.

“If they were able to get into the Great Lakes we would see huge effects,” she said.

Jason Ogden can be reached via email at jogden@thealpenanews.com or by phone at 358-5693. Follow Jason on Twitter @jo_alpenanews. Read his blog, Sunny side up, with Jason at www.thealpenanews.com.

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