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President’s Message
Officers and Board Members - 2013
What Friends Are For! In 1961, our industry’s first society, the Hyacinth Control Society, was formed to address aquatic weed problems. Other gatherings of experts led to the formation of the Florida Aquatic Plant Management Society in 1976. At these meetings, leaders of aquatic plant control activities and manufacturers of herbicides swapped stories, field experiences, and weed control successes. Today, the face-to-face talks have been all but replaced by social media and Internet communications. Your South Florida Aquatic Plant Management Society provides an informal venue at our general meetings to meet others in our local aquatic plant community and to exchange information, education, and ideas. Join us! Mark Weinrub, President South Florida Aquatic Plant Management Society
Officers 2013 Mark Weinrub: President…………….. Joel Wolf: Past President ……………. Linda Wolonick: Secretary …………...
T: 954.972.8126 T: 954.382.9766 T: 954.370.0041
Board Members 2013 John Baylor …………………………… James Boggs …………………………. Adam Gardner ………………………... Dr. Lyn Gettys ……………………….... John Lepage ………………………….. John Lynch ……………………………. John Raymundo ………………………. Jason Rivera …………………………... Craig Smith ……………………………. Steve Weinsier …………………………
T: 407.472.0520 T: 863.557.0076 T: 954.831.0754 T: 954.577.6331 T: 954.654.1150 T: 561.633.7226 T: 561.965.4159 T: 954.572.2388 T: 561.301.8326 T: 954.382.9766
The Francis E. “Chil” Rossbach Scholarship Fund Funds from the scholarship are used to help defray costs for students taking classes related to the study of aquatic environmental sciences or related areas. The scholarship is open to anyone, and all are encouraged to apply. Applications will be accepted throughout the year and the scholarship awarded when a suitable candidate is found. Money raised by the Society during the year partially goes to fund this scholarship, the intent of which is to promote the study of aquatics. For an application, please go to www.sfapms.org.
Cover Photo: Stephen Montgomery, Allstate Resource Management
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Science of Sinkholes Chalklike material, water wreak havoc “Millions of years of geological activity and marine ecology culminated in the sudden appearance [in February] of a 50-foot hole under a Florida house. Sinkholes similar to one that swallowed 37-year-old Jeff Bush’s bedroom and, tragically, him along with it in the Tampa suburb of Seffner are common in Florida, experts say. Ironically, it’s because the Florida peninsula is one of the world’s most stable areas. Florida sits atop a plateau that extends more than 100 miles west and 50 miles east of the peninsula. Surrounded by ocean with little volcanic activity, a thick layer of soft limestone has gone virtually undisturbed below the surface. The remains of millions of years of sea life have fused underground, adding another fine layer of material. The geological condition is called karst, and it means that what lies beneath the surface in Seffner and much of Florida is essentially the same material chalk is made from, said Stephen Kish, a professor with Florida State University’s Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science. When that karst layer meets rainwater that has absorbed carbon dioxide – making it slightly acidic – it dissolves. ‘It’s like a roof that has a weakness in it,’ Kish said. ‘Eventually, the roof caves in because of weakness and Photo: Sun-Sentinel Page 14A, Tribune Newspapers it can’t support its own weight.’ Changes in drainage due to construction of agricultural irrigation have spurred outbreaks of sinkholes, where dozens can suddenly appear near drainage wells and fields. Groundwater pumping also can make limestone unstable. Drought followed by heavy rains can also create sinkholes, as heavy, water-logged earth presses down on limestone caves suddenly devoid of buoyant water. At the surface, the sinkhole Bush fell into was about 15 feet wide. But engineers determined it likely is about 50 feet wide underground and 50 feet deep. Usually, sinkholes give warning signals by some early sinking, Kish said. A level street may dip 6 inches one day before dropping 6 feet the next. Kentucky and parts of Texas have similar geological conditions, he said. California, on the other hand, sits atop millions of layers of volcanic rock. Any fragile layer of limestone has been overwhelmed by more solid elements. A Florida database of sinkholes statewide shows nearly a dozen in the Seffner area from 1979 to 1988, but none has been recorded recently. The largest sinkhole in Hillsborough County history was more than 200 feet wide and occurred in Sulphur Springs in 2005, according to the Florida database. Kish said sinkhole detection is an inexact science, though microwaves sent through the ground can find caverns. The process is too costly to use for single-family homes, however, he said.” Credit: The preceding article and graphic was taken from page 14A of the March 10th, 2013 edition of the Sun-Sentinel Broward Edition and was written by Joseph Serna of Tribune Newspapers.
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Florida’s Invasive Species Schinus terebinthifolius Brazilian pepper The Brazilian pepper is a medium-sized evergreen tree that is native to Argentina, Paraguay and, as its name implies, Brazil. Flourishing in the warm south Florida climate, Schinus terebinthifolius has been invading the natural Florida ecosystem since its introduction to the area in the midnineteenth century as a cultivated ornamental plant. Today, the non-native invasive occupies over 700,000 acres or Florida land. The Brazilian pepper tree has affected nearly all terrestrial ecosystems in central and southern Florida, especially mangrove, scrub and pine flatwood communities. Along the southwestern part of the Everglades National Park, Schinus terebinthifolius has formed dense forests adjacent to mangroves. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Brazilian pepper is one of Florida’s most notorious nuisance invaders for several reasons, including:
The dense, closed canopy forests created by the tree shade out nearly all surrounding plant life. The invasive affects natural fire regimes. The forests make for poor habitat for native wildlife species. Schinus terebinthifolius is related to poison ivy, poisonwood and poison oak. Due to this, some people may develop allergic skin reactions if they come into contact with the sap of the Brazilian pepper. The shrub-like Brazilan pepper tree generally stands 15-30 feet tall, producing dense clusters of small berries that turn bright red when ripe. Currently, the only way to control the Brazilian pepper tree is through herbicide usage. Trees can be cut down to a stump, which is then treated with an herbicide containing glyphosate or triclophyr. Alternatively, Schinus terebinthifolius can be controlled via basal bark herbicide application (most effective when the trees are flowering) or a foliar herbicide application (which requires significantly more herbicide and can drift to nearby plants). To date, there are no biological controls for Brazilian pepper in the United States. Credit: Brazilian Pepper-tree Control, Gioeli and Langeland, UF/IFAS; Weed Alert, FFWCC
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Wildlife Corner Lontra canadensis River otter The Hydrophyte featured creature is the North American river otter, which is native to and uniquely found on the North American continent. Reaching 2-3 feet in length and up to 30 lbs. in adulthood, our mammalian hydrophyte is equally skilled in traversing both the aquatic and terrestrial worlds. The river otter is a member of the weasel family and creates burrows near the edge of the various waterways it inhabits, which is not limited to just rivers. As a semiaquatic mammal and a member of the aquatic ecosystem, the North American river otter feeds primarily on fish and crayfish. A word of caution: if you have a fish pond, this guy may soon “assist” you in happily removing all of its fish. River otters have been known to be a nuisance to fish farmers, especially here in south Florida. They are a very playful species – you can find them sliding down hills and splashing into the water.
Credit: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Photo Credits: Stephen Montgomery, Allstate Resource Management
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YEA! & KOHL’S Sea oat planting John U. Lloyd Beach State Park Earlier this year, the Youth Environmental Alliance (yea!) partnered with KOHL’s Cares and the Florida Park Service to plant sea oats (Uniola paniculata) at the John U. Lloyd Beach State Park in Dania Beach. Over forty volunteers came out from various KOHL’S stores around South Florida to help raise money for the non profit Youth Environmental Alliance through the KOHL’S Cares Associates in Action outreach program. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of the yea! and dozens of KOHL’s employees, 3,000 sea oats were planted in just one day along the beach, helping to strengthen the most natural and effective defense against beach erosion. Due to the topography and development along South Florida’s beaches, sand erosion is one of the greatest threats to our shores. Sea oats provide stability to the underground soil composition because their long root structure firmly holds sand and dirt in place. Moreover, the sea oats supply a safe habitat for sea turtles and other wildlife that nest along South Florida’s beaches. Thank you to the KOHL’S Cares volunteers and the Florida Park Rangers at John U. Lloyd State Park for supporting the yea! and the local ecosystem.
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Featured Algae Nitella spp. Stonewort Approximately 34 species of Nitella currently make the United States their home. They can be found in lakes and ponds anchored to the bottom sediment, usually a silty bottom. It is a photosynthesizing, multi-cellular green algae. Nitella spp. prefer to grow in shallow water that is soft or acidic. However, some species will grow in water up to eight feet in depth. Nitella and Chara belong to the same family, Characeae. Sometimes they get mistaken for one another or for being the same plant. Nitella has forked branches and does not have any calcified deposits like Chara does. Nitella is also more delicate than Chara and does not produce a foul odor. Photo Credit: Molecular Expression, Florida State University
This genus ranges in stem length from 2 cm to 1.2 m. There are 6-8 branches per whorl per node on the stem of this macro algae. The branches then split into branchlets, which may remain simple or become forked. Branch color varies from dark green to light green to gray-green or sometimes translucent. Nitella spp. can reproduce either sexually or vegetatively via fragmentation. The antheridias (male organs) are solitary and located in the axils of the branches. The oogonias (female organs) are either solitary or in clusters to the sides of the branchlets just below the antheridias. This algae is seldom considered a problem. Occasionally, Nitella out-competes other aquatic species. Most biologists consider it to be beneficial. On the off chance that it becomes a nuisance it can be managed in a variety of different ways. Copper sulfate has been proven to be effective when managing this genus. Manual removal is also a possibility but, remember this plant can also reproduce vegetatively via fragmentation. Resource managers use a variety of plants and macro algae when managing ponds and lakes. A resource manager may use one of a variety of species of Nitella much in the same way Chara is used. Photo Credit: The New York Botanical Garden Credit: Samantha Sardes, Allstate Resource Management
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Calendar of Upcoming Events
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Hydrophyte Photo Contest
September 16-18 MidSouth Aquatic Plant Management Society 32nd Annual Conference Tunica, MS www.msapms.org
Do you have a photo that you’d like to see
September 27 SFAPMS Board of Directors Meeting www.sfapms.org
To enter our 1st Annual Cover Photo Contest, send your best cover-worthy and SFAPMS-themed photo to:
October 14-17 Florida Aquatic Plant Management Society 37th Annual Training Conference St. Augustine, FL www.fapms.org
info@sfapms.org
October 31 SFAPMS General Meeting www.sfapms.org February 3-6, 2014 Weed Science Society of America 2014 Annual Meeting Vancouver, British Columbia www.wssa.net
on the cover of an upcoming issue of The Hydrophyte?
The winner of this year’s contest will be contacted via email when his/her entry is chosen to be the featured cover photo on an upcoming Hydrophyte issue. Runnersup will have a section inside the issue featuring their photos and credits.
Good Luck!
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Applicator Information Field Safety Maintaining awareness of your surroundings, conditions, and actions is the best way to avoid injury. Field personnel need to be aware of potential hazards from many sources on a daily basis. There are four main areas of safety to be conscious of when working in the field:
Herbicide safety - Herbicides are not a safety concern WHEN USED PROPERLY. As licensed applicators, you are entrusted by the state with the responsibility of using these products in a safe and correct manner. Herbicide packaging includes many important pieces of safety information. Applicators should be aware of things like the signal word, first aid, hazardous properties, and PPE.
Signal words in increasing importance: Caution: Relatively non-toxic to slightly toxic Warning: Moderately toxic Danger: Highly toxic
Compliance with all label restrictions is required by law. Applicators must take proper steps to post/report restrictions to users of the treated water body. As a licensed applicator, it’s your responsibility to know and use the proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for whatever herbicide you are using. Remember the proper procedure for dealing with herbicide spills: The Three “C”s: 1. Control the spill – stop the source 2. Contain the spill – keep the spill from spreading 3. Clean up the spill – safely recover any material
Vehicle safety – As applicators, we use a variety of vehicles to do our job, including trucks, trailers, outboard boats, small boats, canoes, Gators, ATVs and Airboats. Be cautious of slippery decks and truck beds. Even small spills in boats should be cleaned up immediately. Secure loose items in boats and truck beds – items like herbicide bottles, paddles, tools and measuring cups should be secured to prevent them from flying into other vehicles on the road. Remember, it doesn’t take much for an unsecured paddle to become a projectile!
Early detection of vehicle problems can avoid big problems in the field. Make sure to: Check trailer hubs, tires, lights and chains Check winches for frayed cables and straps Check boat hulls for cracks Check boat props for excessive wear Check ATV and truck fluids Check for any leaks/puddles under vehicles Continues on page 18
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Check and maintain seals on backpacks and hand sprayers Receive proper training before using a new or unfamiliar piece of equipment Pay attention to your surroundings and equipment at all times, especially when manually cutting and clearing vegetation
Environmental safety – Florida can be an environment of extremes! Failure to recognize this can be dangerous and costly. Some environmental concerns to be aware of include: Common wildlife species can pose a safety concern in treatment areas Constantly changing water levels and shorelines can make unsafe situations for unaware applicators Have a sense of the weather when going out in the field – rapidly changing conditions can endanger even the most experienced applicators Unseen headwalls, irrigation pipes and drop-offs can damage both equipment and property – always look before you launch!
Credit: Stephen Montgomery, Allstate Resource Management
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Industry Announcements DBHYDRO: SFWMD’s Web-Enabled Environmental Database Training Course “The South Florida Water Management District cordially invites you to our newly developed training course: DBHYDRO Environmental Database. Course participants will learn how to access water level, gate opening, rainfall, water quality and hydrogeologic data on the District’s web-enabled environmental database, DBHYDRO. The database stores hydrologic, meteorologic, hydrogeologic and water quality data, and is the source of historical and up-to-date environmental data for the 16-county region covered by the District. Users can search DBHYDRO, using one or more criteria, and to generate a summary of the data from the available period of record. Users can then select data sets of interest and have time series data displayed on their screen in tables or graphs. Users can also download data to their computers for later use. Other features of DBHYDRO include discipline-oriented menus, map-based access to data, near real-time data access, statistical reports, dynamic data graphing and an online user guide. The course is a free, one-day event designed to further assist users with data retrieval techniques. The Instructor(s) has more than two decades of experience and training in the use of DBHYDRO. The training is geared toward scientists, engineers, consultants, educators, college and university faculty, students and interested citizens. Local government, state and federal employees are also welcome. Water managers utilize data within DBHYDRO to make important decisions in managing the South Florida ecosystem. These data serve as the cornerstone with assisting the District in fulfilling its mission to manage and protect water resources of the region by balancing and improving water quality, flood control, natural systems and water supply.” Note: The preceding verbiage was taken from the June 2013 DBHYDRO Environmental Database Training invitation and was written by SFWMD Water Quality Analysis Division Staff Environmental Scientist Sharon Peterkin. To find out more about the DBHYDRO training course, including how to request future courses and register, contact: Sharon Peterkin at speterk@sfwmd.gov; (561) 686-8800, Ext. 4594 or toll-free (Florida only) 1 (800) 432-2045, Ext. 4594. You must be at least 18 years old to register. Seats are limited and are available on a first-come basis.
Join SFAPMS Today!
We can help you with continuing education units for your license. Applicators seeking a license in the aquatic category must demonstrate practical knowledge of: • Pest organisms in aquatic environments • Control measures that pertain to the control of such pests • The equipment or methodologies required to safely and effectively implement such measures • Calculating the volume of water to be treated • Application rates • pH • Potential secondary effects • Various water use situations and the potential of downstream effects • Potential pesticide effects on non-target organisms; and • The principles of limited area application
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The Hydrophyte
South Florida Aquatic Plant Management Society proudly thanks New SILVER Sponsors:
And Bronze Sponsor:
South Florida APMS 6900 SW 21st Court Building 9 Davie, FL 33317
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