easygrants id: 24693 national fish and wildlife foundation ... · therefore, sanders county...

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Easygrants ID: 24693 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation NFWF/Legacy Grant Project ID: 1701.11.024693

Pulling Together: Managing Invasives 2010 - Submit Final Programmatic Report (Activities)

Grantee Organization: Sanders County, Montana

Project Title: Eurasian Watermilfoil Control (MT)

Project Period 03/01/2011 - 02/29/2012

Award Amount $30,000.00

Matching Contributions $30,000.00

Project Location Description (from Proposal) The 60-mile long project area is located on Noxon Rapids and Cabinet

Gorge Reservoirs on the Lower Clark Fork River in Sanders County,

northwestern Montana.

Project Summary (from Proposal) Implement education, boat inspections and a rapid response network to

control the spread of Eurasian watermilfoil in the Lower Clark Fork

River in Montana. Project will protect fish, native plants, water uses and

water quality, and will reduce the risk of spreading the invasive to other

waterways.

Summary of Accomplishments Key accomplishments and outcomes of the Eurasian Watermilfoil

(EWM) Control project in Sanders County, Montana included: (1) an

expanded public education and outreach effort encompassing one-on-

one personal contacts with over 1,000 boaters at public boat launches

and campgrounds in Sanders County, MT, and educational disp lays and

information disseminated via 13 community events, 12 weekly ads, and

media interviews and editorials; (2)continuation of a mandatory boat

inspection station operating 7 days/week near the Montana/Idaho border

that doubled the amount of inspections compared to 2010; and (3)

development of a regional Early Detection Rapid Response (EDRR)

plan and network for aquatic invasive species with Idaho, Montana,

Washington and British Columbia.

Lessons Learned One-on-one personal contacts at the public boat launches and

campgrounds were better able to be measured and quantifed than

education via newspaper ads. Likewise, editorials were more likely to

be read and provided more useful information than that contained in

newspaper ads. Moving the boat inspection station to a more visible

location in 2011 resulted in a nearly 100% increase in the number of

boats inspected for AIS. It was also helpful to keep accurate records of

the number of boats inspected, the states of origin, and the destination

water bodies.

Conservation Activities Expand seasonal EWM Education Coordinator position

Progress Measures Other (Increase to March-October from May-Sept in 2010)

Value at Grant Completion 540 hours Mar-Oct

Conservation Activities Increase one-on-one personal contacts at ramps/campgrounds

Progress Measures Other (number of people contacted/number of locations)

Value at Grant Completion 1,010 people at 14 facilities

Conservation Activities Contacts at public events

Progress Measures Other (number of public events)

Value at Grant Completion 13 events attended

Conservation Activities Bottom barrier installations

Progress Measures Other (amount of square footage installed)

Value at Grant Completion 20,200 square feet

Conservation Activities Boat inspections

Progress Measures Other (increase number of contacts/inspections)

Value at Grant Completion 1,729 inspections in 2011 vs 995 in 2010

Conservation Activities Early Detection Rapid Reponse Plan (EDRR)

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Progress Measures Other (EDRR Plan adopted)

Value at Grant Completion EDRR plan adopted by western Montana counties

Conservation Activities EDRR network

Progress Measures Other (network of contacts established)

Value at Grant Completion MT, ID, WA, BC network established

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Final Programmatic Report Narrative

Instructions: Save this document on your computer and complete the narrative in the format

provided. The final narrative should not exceed ten (10) pages; do not delete the text provided

below. Once complete, upload this document into the on-line final programmatic report task as

instructed.

1. Summary of Accomplishments

In four to five sentences, provide a brief summary of the project’s key accomplishments and outcomes that were observed

or measured.

Key accomplishments and outcomes of the Eurasian Watermilfoil (EWM) Control project in Sanders County, Montana

included: (1) an expanded public education and outreach effort encompassing one-on-one personal contacts with boaters

at public boat launches and campgrounds in Sanders County, MT, and educational displays and information disseminated

via community events, weekly ads, and media interviews and editorials; (2)continuation of a mandatory boat inspection

station operating 7 days/week at the Montana/Idaho border; and (3) development of a regional Early Detection Rapid

Response (EDRR) plan and network for aquatic invasive species.

2. Project Activities & Outcomes

Activities

Describe and quantify (using the approved metrics referenced in your grant agreement) the primary activities

conducted during this grant.

Briefly explain discrepancies between the activities conducted during the grant and the activities agreed upon

in your grant agreement.

Outcomes

Describe and quantify progress towards achieving the project outcomes described in your grant agreement.

(Quantify using the approved metrics referenced in your grant agreement or by using more relevant metrics

not included in the application.)

Briefly explain discrepancies between what actually happened compared to what was anticipated to happen.

Provide any further information (such as unexpected outcomes) important for understanding project activities

and outcome results.

Expanded Public Education/Outreach – The months of operation for Sanders County’s seasonal EWM Education

Coordinator position, formerly working from May to September, was increased to work from March to October. During

this time, the EWM Coordinator conducted over 1,000 one-on-one personal contacts with boaters at eight public boat

ramps and campgrounds throughout the County, coordinated the installation of 20,200 square feet of bottom barriers with

shoreline owners along the lower Clark Fork River, organized and operated educational booths/displays at 13 community

events, provided media interviews and editorials, placed 12 weekly newspaper ads, disseminated educational brochures,

and established contacts/attended meetings with neighboring counties to lay the groundwork for development of an Early

Detection Rapid Response (EDRR) plan and network.

A budget amendment for the EWM Education Coordinator’s travel and miscellaneous supplies and materials was

submitted to and approved by NFWF.

Continuation of Boat Inspections at the Idaho/Montana Border - A boat inspection station on the lower Clark Fork River

near the Montana/Idaho state border operated 12 hours per day, 7 days per week, from Memorial Day in late May 2011

through Labor Day weekend in early September 2011. Two inspectors worked at this station and were trained by a

certified Level 2 boat inspector from the Montana Department of Agriculture (MTDA). In addition to inspection for

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EWM, additional inspection protocols were expanded to include zebra mussels, quagga mussels, and other aquatic

invasive species.

Though the boat inspectors were contracted by Sanders County in 2010 and the grant envisioned continuing this

arrangement, the MTDA desired to incorporate this station into their newly established statewide boat inspection program

in 2011. Therefore, Sanders County provided NFWF grant funds to MTDA for the contracted boat inspectors at this

station after seeking and receiving approval by NFWF.

Additionally, the inspection site in 2011 was moved a short distance east into the State of Montana to the junction of State

Highway 56 and State Highway 200. This provided a more visible location than the location in 2010, and allowed

inspection of boats traveling both west/downstream into Idaho as well as further east/upstream into Montana. The more

visible location resulted in a total of 1,729 boats inspected vs. only 995 in 2010. Boats originated from 21 different U.S.

states and Canadian provinces, and only one boat had to be cleaned to remove EWM.

Early Detection Rapid Response (EDRR) Plan & Network – The EWM Education Coordinator worked to establish key

contacts in neighboring counties for an EDRR network including Sanders, Lincoln, Lake, Flathead, Missoula and Ravalli

Counties in northwestern Montana, Bonner County in north Idaho, and the Canadian province of British Columbia. A

workshop entitled “EDRR for Invasive Aquatic Plant Management in the Northwest” was held on November 9, 2011 in

Dover, Idaho. The workshop purpose was to improve communication among aquatic plan managers in the Upper

Columbia River Basin (Idaho, Montana, Washington, British Columbia) and to identify obstacles and solutions for

implementing an effective EDRR program for aquatic plants.

The meeting was attended by 46 professionals from the above states/provinces representing county, state and federal

agencies and private corporations. Presentations and discussions were made on the following subjects: current aquatic

plant EDRR programs in the Upper Columbia Basin; new requirements for NPDES permits for herbicide applications in

U.S. waters; USFWS role in facilitating AIS management programs; successful EDRR programs; and how to respond to

AIS emergencies.

The workshop resulted in the following action items: a consenus amount western Montana counties to adopt the State of

Montana draft EDRR protocol; Idaho will work with the USFWS to obtain better information on ESA/EDRR issues;

increase interest in studying habitat-related impacts from EWM, curlyleaf pondweed and flowering rush; and identify

partners involved with EDRR projects within the Northern Interior Columbia Basin (NICB) to work on survey,

prevention, education and treatment including identifying contacts and providing email updates on surveys, project

results, management efforts and workshops within the NICB. Ultimately a CWMA-like group for aquatic invasive

species encompassing the entire NICB will be formed.

The grant envisioned that the EDRR contact network would be in place prior to the 2011 summer season. However, this

activity had to be delayed until after the 2011 summer season to allow MTDA to approve their final “Statewide Strategic

Plan for Invasive Aquatic Plant Management and Resource Protection” that included the state’s EDRR protocol.

Additionally, the EWM Education Coordinator moved out-of-state in October and a contractor had to be hired to complete

this activity. This resulted in a project and budget amendment that was submitted to and approved by NFWF.

3. Lessons Learned

Describe the key lessons learned from this project, such as the least and most effective conservation practices or notable

aspects of the project’s methods, monitoring, or results. How could other conservation organizations adapt their projects

to build upon some of these key lessons about what worked best and what did not?

One-on-one personal contacts at the public boat launches and campgrounds were more measurable/quantifiable than

newspaper ads, and editorials were likely more read and provided more useful information than newspaper ads. Moving

the boat inspection station to a more visible location in 2011 resulted in a nearly 100% increase in the number of boats

inspected for AIS. It was also helpful to keep accurate records of the number of boats inspected, the states of origin, and

the destination water bodies.

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4. Dissemination

Briefly identify any dissemination of lessons learned or other project results to external audiences, such as the public or

other conservation organizations.

Project results/lessons learned were disseminated to the public and others via the Sanders County EWM Task Force

including the Sanders County Commissioners, Montana State Univ. Extension, Montana Dept. of Agriculture, Sanders

County Weed District, Avista Utilities, Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks, Noxon-Cabinet Shoreline Coalition, Green

Mountain Conservation District, Tri-State Water Quality Council, Weed Management Services, U.S. Forest Service,

Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes, and PPL Montana.

5. Project Documents

Include in your final programmatic report, via the Uploads section of this task, the following:

2-10 representative photos from the project. Photos need to have a minimum resolution of 300 dpi and must

be accompanied with a legend or caption describing the file name and content of the photos;

report publications, GIS data, brochures, videos, outreach tools, press releases, media coverage;

any project deliverables per the terms of your grant agreement.

POSTING OF FINAL REPORT: This report and attached project documents may be shared by the Foundation and any

Funding Source for the Project via their respective websites. In the event that the Recipient intends to claim that its final

report or project documents contains material that does not have to be posted on such websites because it is protected

from disclosure by statutory or regulatory provisions, the Recipient shall clearly mark all such potentially protected

materials as “PROTECTED” and provide an explanation and complete citation to the statutory or regulatory source for

such protection.