John Wentworth wrote:
I boat and fish on freshwater lakes in New Hampshire and some of these
waters are becoming congested with non-native plants, especially milfoil.
There are some waters that more resemble a meadow than a river or lake. When
milfoil reaches this point the water is lost to both boating and fishing,
although some milfoil seems to provide cover for fish and improve fishing.
Waterfront residents seem convinced that the source of the milfoil is
non-resident boats, and the operators of those boats claim they always
inspect their boat for milfoil before launching. There doesn't seem to be a
consensus on what can, or should, be done, or who should pay for it.

What's being done in your area? I know that southern areas have fought this
battle for years, but it's relatively new in northern New England.



About 25 years ago in the Potomac River which runs by DC on the West
side there was a Hydrila(sp?) problem. The fear was that it was going to
choke off all of the sun light. Fish were going to die en masse. People
invented Hyrdrila harvesting machines to remove the perceived offending
vegetation. All of the efforts to remove the Hydrila failed and the
stuff was left to grow. The Hydrila patches proved a boon to the
hatching and maturing of fish. The population of fish jumped. The bass
loved the stuff and the carp really loved eating it. Now, the Potomac
river is doing just fine.

But, we now have the Snake Head fish in some of the tributaries of the
Potomac.

Good luck.