Draft Lake Superior Aquatic Invasive Species Plan

Dec 23: U.S. EPA's Great Lakes National Program Office has release the Draft Lake Superior Aquatic Invasive Species Complete Prevention Plan and is soliciting comments by February 26, 2010. The Lake Superior Binational Program developed the draft Plan for the lake which identifies the pathways aquatic invasive species use to enter and become established in the lake. The Plan recommends prevention actions that need to be newly implemented, in addition to existing efforts, in order to close existing pathways on both sides of the border and prevent new aquatic invasive species from entering the Lake Superior ecosystem.

A series of conference calls will be scheduled for February 2010. On these calls, the plan will be presented via a webcast, and comments will be welcome. In addition, a series of workshops will be held in the spring and summer of 2010 to provide additional information and answer questions. Additional workshop details will be available in early 2010. After the comment period closes on February 26, all comments will be considered and the Plan will be revised and finalized accordingly. An implementation plan will then be written and circulated which will help relevant agencies and organizations incorporate prevention actions and activities into their respective work plans.

Access an overview, links to the complete draft Plan, on-line commenting and related information (click here). Access the EPA Great Lakes website for links to extensive information (click here).