Forest Service battles invasive weeds in Boundary Waters

Superior National Forest officials on Monday asked for public comments on a new plan to battle invasive species on land in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

The plan is to attack the invading plants at critical spots using herbicides, people power and education.

While its remote location has helped keep the relative abundance of invasive plant species down in the BWCAW, the Forest Service has identified about 1,000 known sites totaling 13 acres for treatment in St. Louis, Lake and Cook counties within the 1.1 million-acre wilderness.

Most of the problem spots are near campsites and portages, indicating the plants probably moved in as seeds by hitchhiking with unsuspecting campers.

Invading species can choke out native plants and can affect entire ecosystems, including wildlife that is dependent on native species.

For more information on the plan, or to comment, go to www.fs.usda.gov/superior, and select Land and Resource Management” then “Projects.” Look for “BWCAW Non-native Invasive Plan Management Project.”

Meanwhile, the National Park Service also plans to attack invasive species on land in the Upper Midwest and is forming a plan likely to be released later this year or in 2012. A regional plan would affect Voyageurs National Park, Apostles Islands National Lakeshore and Isle Royale National Park.



From the http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/

Wilderness Volunteers - Giving Something Back

A recent article in the Marin Independent Journal recounted a volunteer experience facilitated through the non-profit organization, Wilderness Volunteers. Without volunteer stewards, many of the critical projects undertaken on public lands, and in wilderness in particular, would never get accomplished. Motivation for spending your time doing volunteer work in the woods runs the gamut from "I love wilderness", to "I just want to give back", to "working on the land is good for my soul." Without volunteers public lands would suffer. It's a simple fact.

From the article:

Not everyone can wrap his or her head around the appeal of spending a week in the Utah wilderness ripping out invasive Russian olive trees and paying for the privilege. Fortunately there are enough people who are eager to do that and similar service projects to make Wilderness Volunteers -- a nonprofit organization founded in 1997 and dedicated to organizing volunteer service to America's wild lands -- a success story.

Read the full article here: http://www.marinij.com/lifestyles/ci_16859096