Foiled by milfoil

Star Tribune Sat, 12 Jan 2008 05:35:04 GMT
Fight against milfoil creates even more battles

As guardians of a special lake of superior clarity, homeowners around Christmas Lake are pondering a serious question: Should they dose the entire body of water with chemicals to kill off Eurasian water milfoil? Up to now, they have battled the invasive weeds on the west metro lake with a mechanical harvester that has the effect of a water lawnmower. Some individuals also have applied herbicide on a spot basis in front of their homes. But after a messy, poorly done harvest last summer that left some shoreline littered with milfoil, some members of the Christmas Lake Homeowners Association felt they were losing the battle and stopped paying dues. The green, feathery underwater plant is a problem for Christmas Lake and hundreds of other lakes across the state because it grows so thickly it gets in the way of boating and swimming and crowds out native plants that keep water clear and provide habitat for fish. On Thursday night, about 30 of the 142 Christmas Lake homeowners gathered at Excelsior Elementary School to discuss options for the coming summer and hear more about a chemical called fluridone. It is a whole-lake herbicide that if applied correctly can kill milfoil but not affect native plants. Retired federal Judge Miles Lord, a homeowner on the lake and a member of the association board, had sent a letter urging neighbors to turn out to oppose “poisoning’’ of the lake.

[[keywords: LandUse;Living;Metro;]]