Invasive Species Alert – 11 Jun 2021

By Ken Waller


The invasive Eurasian Water Milfoil is spreading rapidly in Sharbot Lake, and large mats are beginning to clog up the lake much earlier than usual this year, especially near town. The unusually warm weather and lack of rain are speeding up all weed growth. Unfortunately, boats travelling through these weed masses chop up the milfoil, leaving pieces that easily and quickly reroot, spreading the problem further.

Boaters and swimmers are urged to detour around the weeds, and property owners should not chop up or cut the weeds along their shore. If you do rake or hand pull weeds, make sure to collect all the pieces from the water and dispose of them on land far from shore. This link https://www.invasivespeciescentre.ca/invasive-species/meet-the-species/invasive-aquatic-plants/eurasian-water-milfoil/ gives further details as well as photos to help identify it.

This is a problem spreading across many Ontario lakes. and SLPOA along with other associations and the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority will be monitoring the situation in hopes of finding effective solutions. In the meantime, please ensure that boats, including kayaks, as well as their accessories like paddles, motors, bait pails, etc., are all thoroughly cleaned before transferring from one body of water to another.