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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWeed Board Update Documents STAFF REPORT Date: May 7, 2014 To: BOCC and Weed Board Through: Tom Anderson, County Administrator From: Ed Keith, County Forester RE: Weed District and Vegetation Management – Staff summary of activities A new approach to vegetation and noxious weed management was implemented in March 2013 in an effort to address anticipated long term funding deficiencies and a need to clearly tie activities to appropriate and specified funding streams. The fundamental concept was to keep County right-of-way vegetation management activities within the Road Department along with agency partnerships and contracting of vegetation work. Weed District related activities, focused more on the public and funded primarily by grants, were shifted to Natural Resource Protection under the direction of the County Forester. This included activities such as outreach and education, coordination of grant funded treatment for private lands and responding to complaints. Technical expertise and experience within the Road Department is available and coordinated in support of the overall program goals. This staff report summarizes the productivity of the major elements of the weed program approximately one year after implementation of the structural changes to the vegetation and noxious weed programs. Outreach and education Most events listed as priorities within the attached Weed Board Action Plan (or that have been attended in the past) were staffed with a combination of County staff and Weed Board members over the past year. Site visits and presentations have been provided to many individuals and organizations in addition to multiple newspaper interviews, web articles and radio/television interviews all contributing to raising awareness of weeds in Deschutes County. A summarized list of the main outreach and education activity has been listed as an attachment to this report. Cost share The Cost Share program has been funded with Title II grants from the USFS Regional Advisory Committee. This program results in most of our private land acreage treatment and also prompts one on one contact with many landowners to aid in identification and effective vegetation management. Last fiscal year saw more projects (39) completed than any other year with an average number of acres being treated (318 acres). Funding for landowner s through this program has totaled about $11,000 per year, with the same amount contributed by landowners. A grant funding request has recently been submitted to the USFS for $40,000 to continue funding this program. Vegetation Management 61150 SE 27th Street ● Bend, Oregon 97702 541-322-7117 ● Fax 541-388-2719 Other weed treatment for high priority weeds Treatment for specific high priority weeds has been funded through grants with the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Orange Hawkweed treatment was funded for another year in 2014 and that project will be ongoing through early summer. We are also working with Crook and Jefferson Counties on a tri-county approach to treat high priority weeds through ODA grants. With ODA grants the County Forester has been coordinating the grant writing, outreach, monitoring and reporting and the Road Department Vegetation Supervisor has provided technical expertise and input as well as applying the weed treatment. Grant funding through ODA will total approximately $30,000 this year. We have also worked closely with ODA on two new aquatic weeds with press releases as well as assisting with treatment. Roadside and contract vegetation management Over the past year there has been a significant increase in income from existing contracts and requests for additional treatment of noxious weeds from our agency partners in Deschutes County. In 2013, the Road Department’s vegetation maintenance staff treated approximately 2,500 acres of county right-of-way. Additionally, approximately 570 acres of contract work with agency partners brought in approximately $64,000. In 2014 contract work will bring in approximately $123,000 and will treat over 1,250 acres by the end of the year. The Oregon Department of Transportation, the City of Bend, Central Oregon Irrigation District, and the Bend Airport are among those that have increased the amount of treatment in 2014. The roadside maintenance and contract work areas will result in treatment of over 3,500 acres; the highest total ever treated by the Road Department. Enforcement In compliance with BOCC direction regarding code enforcement, all complaints received in 2013 were investigated. Valid complaints (11) resulted in a letter to the landowner seeking to raise their awareness and encourage them to treat their weeds. The majority of landowners willingly complied with the request, however results are only effectively achieved over the long run. Previous noxious weed code implementation and orders issued by the BOCC did not include a mechanism for enforcement if the landowner chose not to voluntarily comply. Early in 2014, staff developed a weed ordinance to incorporate weed control into county code. Following public input this ordinance was passed and will become effective during the summer of 2014. Media interest related to the ordinance helped raise the public awareness throughout the County around the issue of noxious weeds. Funding and future activities The BOCC, recognizing declining funding resulting from the phasing out of the Secure Rural Schools Act, allocated a portion of federal Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding to replace funding that Title II and Title III programs that have historically provided to both the forestry program and the noxious weed program. This funding has provided near term stability to both of those programs. Provided PILT funding can continue to be allocated, public outreach and education activities, enforcement, support to the weed board and coordination with other agencies can continue into the future. Grant funding for on the ground treatment projects will continue to be aggressively pursued as opportunities arise. Summary Based on the body of work performed during the first year, staff believes the structural changes to the weed program have resulted in the successful continuance of services while achieving the cost savings, staff utilization, and overall efficiency desired at the onset of implementation. Attachments: Summary of outreach activities March 2013-April 2014 Weed Board 2014 Action Plan Memo Attachment: Summary of outreach/education activities, March 2013 to present: City Edition video on weed, March 25, 2013 – coordinated with Cheryl Howard and Julie Craig Lets Pull Together weed pull , Bend, Sisters – 2 weekends in June 2013 Deschutes River Woods Neighborhood Association annual meeting, July 2013 Deschutes County Fair, July-August 2013 Orange Hawkweed outreach – press release, radio interviews; door to door visits, Summer 2013 Coordinated a press release in cooperation with ODA to alert the public to two new aquatic weeds, yellow floating heart and water primrose. Radio interviews and news and web articles resulted in new populations being discovered, Summer, Fall 2013 Revised weed brochure and printed 5,000 copies (“Noxious Weeds, Your Responsibility”) and have been distributing at various events and to communities, vendors and other outlets Presentation to the Sisters Rotary in November 2013 Toured various lots in the city of La Pine with the La Pine Chamber of Commerce, discussed weed education and treatment and prioritized lots for outreach/treatment in the upcoming spring, Fall 2014 Presentation to the Hardy Plant Club in January 2014 Living on an few acres conference. Planning meetings plus Saturday event in March 2014 Public outreach, interviews, articles and meetings around the proposed weed ordinance, Feb – April 2014. Many different articles, editorials, radio interviews Earth Day in Bend, April 2014 Home and Garden Show, May 2014 Created a table top display for outreach events. Several edits and additions to resources available on Deschutes County Weed website. Many public contacts originate from information found on the website. Instituted a quarterly update newsletter detailing activities around weed and vegetation management in Deschutes County including what programs are available to the public. Emailed and posted on the web, distributed to weed board and email lists. Many individual landowner visits providing technical assistance and/or cost share assistance Deschutes County Weed Board Action Plan 2014 County Weed List The Weed Board will update the County Weed List and present it to the County Commissioners for adoption and publication. The Weed Board will responsible for this goal. The list will be updated with assistance from ODA and County Vegetation Managers. The list will be updated by February. Outreach The board will make an effort to increase its outreach efforts to other groups and entities within the county. Target groups include home owners associations, the City of La Pine, and the Master Gardeners Association. Educational Events The Weed Board and the vegetation managers will support getting the educational message out about weeds. This may include but not limited to the following: Let’s Pull Together event County Fair LOAFA CO Green Industry Conference Public service announcements Newspaper articles TV spots / interviews Home and Garden show. Earth Day Adopt a Right-of-way weed program for within the cities Others? Educational Materials The Weed Board working with vegetation managers will work on updating and or creating educational materials regarding weed management, weed impacts, and restoration of infested sites. Some examples might be: Create a table size “Weed Wagon” for instances where the Weed Wagon is too big not appropriate. Research the economic benefits of weed control and incorporate into the education materials. Find or develop a Restoration Model/publication to include with the educational materials Update materials in the weed wagon to include before and after photos, economic benefits of weed control, EBIPM, others? County Weed Program Funding The board will explore and map out possible strategies to obtain secure funding for the county weed program. Enforcement of County Weed Policy The board will explore what is needed to implement the weed enforcement ordinance. Administration / Efficiency: In an effort to be more efficient with the limited board meeting time, the board will make an effort to electronically review and comment on documents prior to the board meetings. Examples of documents that can be reviewed and commented on can include the following: Weed Board meeting minutes, County weed list, Membership and technical assistance lists, and Educational materials. Additionally, when the board deems it appropriate, it will create subcommittees and or appoint a single member to handle larger tasks that tend to bog down the board meetings. The sub-committee or individual will report to the board before moving forward with any decision. Deschutes County Vegetation Program One Year Review 2014 Talking points for the meeting with the Board of Commissioners It’s been a little over one year since the county forester and vegetation manager positions were combined. There were a lot of changes made to several county positions. At the time the outcome of these decisions were unknown. With one year in the books we have the opportunity to look back and assess those decisions and their outcomes. As the Chairman of the weed board I solicited input from the weed board, technical advisors and the county vegetation employees to help paint the picture of the current vegetation management program specifically focusing on invasive noxious weeds. There are several distinct subprograms that make up the Vegetation Management Program. Education, prevention and treatments are the three major components. Each will be reviewed separately. Education: Education is and will always be the cornerstone of a successful invasive species program. Education is investing in the future. Without a strong education component it is difficult to get the public’s support, and not just with weeds, but everything. Building a successful education program takes time, commitment, and money. At times the return for the investment will seem miniscule, patience is the key. From comparing last year education efforts to previous years there appears to be a decline in the educational outreach, specifically with the 6th-12th grades. We need to engage more with the youth of our county. This generation will inherit our problems, having them aware of the issues at an early age will increase the chances for their success. I can’t stress this enough, education is the key, it can’t be measured in number of presentations made, events attended, brochures handed out, etc. It will be measured in the overall population’s awareness about invasive species. Realistically we can never do enough, but we can make the effort to try. You can’t wait for the opportunities to come to you. You have to go out and make the opportunities happen. Looking back we (Ed, Jon, and the weed board) did a lot in the last year, but there is still more to do, and the job will never be finished. Prevention: Prevention is easy to say but very hard to measure. Most of prevention will fall under education, but one area specifically where the county was very active has basically dropped off the plate. This is the weed free forage inspection program. We are all aware of the funding issues that came along with this service. We should look at the positive effects of this program. Currently Deschutes County has the largest number of weed free forage growers in the state (almost 50%). This represents dollars coming into the county. For the county to provide this weed inspection service (Yes, we can charge for it) sends the message that the county is supporting these growers. Currently the inspectors come from Jefferson County and the wait for the inspection can be lengthy. This can have an effect on field recovery time and also the value of the crop. This weed free forage also reduces the potential for invasive species showing up on public lands, which will reduce the opportunity for them to show up on private lands too. This program needs to be revived and become another component in the vegetation management program. Treatments: Treatments can be divided up into three sub programs; cost share program, roadside treatments, and contract treatments. A successful vegetation treatment program treats the entire infestation. Weeds do not recognize political boundaries; to successfully treat any infestation political boundaries need to be overcome. The cost share program seems to be doing OK. This program is an effective way for the county to connect with the community, combining education, prevention and treatments at the ground level. A large portion of this program is funded with grant dollars. Grant dollars are becoming scares and the competition for those dollars getting tighter. It will be difficult to maintain programs relying of those funds. The general feedback for the public about this program is very positive. How many times have you heard “I’m from the government and here to help” and soon realize they have no help to give. This program has the funding to help, with the extra added bonus that most of the people realize that the treatments are not as expensive as they once thought and just keep on treating the weeds without any assistance. At some point in the future this program needs secure funding to continue its success. Roadside treatments; the road department is getting the job done. How that plays out in the future will be anybody’s guess. Funding will always be an issue. Contract treatments will depend on the county’s spray crews work load. This one can be a slippery slope. Turning down contracts within the county may mean they go untreated, and keep producing seed or getting moved around. Currently most of the treatment equipment suitable for covering large tracts of land is county owned. Many of the treatments on Federal lands within the county are completed by the county spray crews. Manpower will be the limiting factor here. Remember that weeds do not recognize political boundaries. There might be possibilities for private businesses to take over this, but that too will take an investment in equipment. Upcoming issues Looking into the future is tough. Feedback received had several reoccurring issues which are summarized below. . Workload and program capacity I talked with Ed Keith and Jon Valley separately about the programs capacity. Two specific questions were asked; does the program have room to grow and is the program meeting the needs of the people of Deschutes County and the environment? Both Jon and Ed had the same answers. The program is running currently at capacity (90-100%). Meaning that in the overall picture we are holding our own regarding invasive species. This also implies that there is little room for growth, and that any “Speed Bump” will have consequences. The enforcement ordinance will have an effect on workload. The scary part of managing invasive species is that you are never done. Skipping a year can be devastating. We need to commit to improving and growing the program if we want to be successful. Grant dollars are becoming scares and the competition for those dollars is getting tighter. It will be difficult to maintain any programs relying of those funds. The vegetation program needs secure funds (PILT money is not as secure as it sounds). Building an invasive species management program based on grants, and “soft” money is just a recipe for failure. New invasive species are showing up all the time. These species show up very quickly and can spread just as fast. Having the ability to react quickly and efficiently will be key to successfully eradicating these new invaders. Currently the county and ODA are combining efforts to treat orange hawkweed, but at this time it is still an uphill battle. The latest species showing up is yellow floating heart; this aquatic plant is thought to be spread by waterfowl. This one might be a costly battle if you look at all the irrigation/farm ponds that dot the county. ODA is taking the lead on the Yellow Floating Heart. What will be the next one? I think it might already be here. Having funding and trained personnel ready to meet the challenge will help ensure these new invaders do not gain a foothold. The noxious weed enforcement ordinance will require additional manpower to implement. Ultimately this will cut into other parts of the vegetation program. Currently the vegetation program looks like it’s running at capacity. So any new duties will affect those programs currently in place. The first year of the enforcement program will be critical to show the public that this is not just another law in place that does not get enforced. The county can shine if it invests in it and the people will see that the county is serious about noxious weeds. Combining the enforcement program with the education component has the potential for a really nice return on the investment. But it will take a strong commitment in both time and money. Closing thoughts Words like diligence, persistence, tenacity all come into mind when dealing with invasive species. The one that seems to be always dropped from the list is funding. If we truly believe in the cause, we need to truly fund it. Maintaining the natural beauty of this county should be a priority for those who are looking out for the best interests of the community. Bend is the number 1 growing city in the state, if we don’t commit to a progressive and sustainable weed program, the ecological impacts of noxious weeds will be exacerbated and so will the cost. The vegetation management program in Deschutes County is one of the best in the country. Getting to the top is a lot easier that staying there. Let’s make the investment in staying on the top and showing the rest how it’s done. Following is easy, leading is not.