Local Perspective on LD 1725

LD 1725, "the culvert bill", is intended to insure that Maine's culverts are not to be replaced with culverts as they reach the end of their useable lifespan. Nothing is final to date, and MEDOT can still replace with same today if they want or need to.

However in Bremen's Muscongus Brook we have our foot in the door (I think). The Gulf of Maine Council is funding the engineering and design phases of the 2 new MEDOT road crossings where RT32 crosses the brook. This should insure (fingers crossed) that whatever structure replace these old culverts will pass fish....and reptiles, amphibians, aquatic insects and mammals.

Last week Nick Bennett, staff scientist, of NRCM interviewed me on site at my fish ladder. He made a little video that will soon be on their website.... www.nrcm.org I plan on testifying in Augusta later this year to hopefully sway the Army Corp of Engineers to new fish friendly standards. MEDOT will need to answer to the (hopefully new) AC of E's culvert standards.

From what I have seen in Bremen, fish (at least alewife) need more than to simply get up and into a culvert. Never in a natural stream has any fish ever needed to swim upstream through a straight uninterrupted flow for more than say 5 or 10 feet. Our culverts are 40' long. Our brook is 12' wide yet MEDOT installed culverts that are 4' and 5' wide respectively. This forces water to pass through them uninterrupted and at a much faster rate than surrounding waters.

Culverts with their accelerated flow both upstream and mostly downstream contribute to bank erosion adding siltation to the watershed. The constrictions they create also allow debris to become jammed in them necessitating regular costly maintenance by road crews. Culverts are short term cheap yet long term costly for both us and wildlife.

Contributing - David Wilkins

LD 1725: Where does it stand?

Here's an interesting article on LD 1725.

http://www.downeast.com/georges-outdoor-news/2010/april/culvert-rules-returned

'Tis the Season to Plant: Non-Native Plants to Avoid

Since we are smack-dab in the middle of planting season (and how fortunate we have been to have such a fantastic spring) I wanted to remind those who are not familiar with plants what to avoid.  Here is a list of non-native plants considered most invasive in Maine.

1. Purple loosestrife (lythum salicaria)
2. Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii)
3. Oriental bittersweet (celastrus orbiculatus)
4. Japanese knotweed (fallopia japonica)
5. Smooth and common buckthorn (frangula alnus and rhamnus cathartica)
6. Non-native honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.)
7. Garlic mustard (Allaria petiolata)
8. Multiflora rosa (Rosa multiflora)
9. Small-flowered tickle-grass (deschampsia cespitosa ssp. parviflora)
10. Common reed (phragmites australis)

Contributing - Dennis Prior

Alewife Update 5-28-10

David Wilkins

Last nights full moon high tide should have been great incentive for alewives to run into Muscongus Brook. Unfortunately is was only good.

My inspection this morning did reveal ~ 3-400 new dark alewives crowding
up in only the lowest few pools of the brook. Many fish were still in the pools
below the average high tide line, attracting lots of birds. These fish
apparently came in as the tide was falling in the early morning hours. In fact I
found a hundred or so that became trapped (strained out) and died in the falling tide
between a jumble of rocks. My fear is these alewife were held back from running
during the rising tide by elver fishermen. I wasn't there however.

I collected the dead alewives (2, 5 gallon buckets +) and gave them to
a lobster fisherman, of which I have been trying to keep him from taking the lives ones.

These somewhat cooler days may inspire more run attempts this weekend. I still haven't seen any mass of alewife as far as the old mill. A few have been seen above the southern RT 32 culvert. Perhaps this afternoon the ladder will be in action as these new recruits push the others further upstream.

Osprey Cam

The Osprey nest in Woolwich now has an OspreyCam. Check out the recently hatched chicks on live cam at the web address below by copying into your browser :)

http://www.briloon.org/watching-wildlife/osprey-cam.php

Alewife Update 5-25-10

David Wilkins

Last nights high tide did not bring any alewives into Muscongus Brook. I was
at the high tide line with 4 elver fishermen. I watched the school approach the
mouth of the brook a few times, but there was always one guy with his light
and dip net spooking them back out. Frustrating. Perhaps other conditions
held them out.???

The alewife that came in on Sunday evenings tide continue to advance their way
towards Webber Pond. Many have ascended the fish ladder and are holding up
inside the southern culvert. I can see their fins breaking the surface in there.
I have sandbags retaining water here. Otherwise they'd wash back out. I have seen
a few in the brook above the southern culvert.

This morning I found 2 dead alewives stuck in rocks quite close to the pond at the old mill. At 4:15 pm I found a single fish holding its place behind a rock inside the north culvert. Most fish are still below the old mill. I continually pry rocks apart here for better fish passage.

Some are quite close to the pond and it is possible that a few may have already reached it. They become hard to find in such small numbers above the north RT 32 culvert.

Water temp at 4pm at the ladder was 28.1 deg C!!.(~ 82 deg F) Dissolved O2 was at 97.3% for the fish-heads in the group. No fish moving during the hottest parts of the days lately....just holding in the pools.

Alewife Update 5-23-10 8pm

They just started coming in at the top of the tide tonight. Not sure if they will advance or head back out tonight. I've seen both things happen. They were held back in the harbor to some extent by 3 elver fishermen with lights and sweeping nets.

David Wilkins

Bremen Alewife Update 5-20-2010

Contributing Author - David Wilkins

With help from the Bremen Conservation Commission's  Bennett Collins we installed the new 2010 fish ladder below the RT 32 southern culvert on Tuesday  (see pic).  I noticed a single alewife in the brook while we were lugging materials down the bank for the ladder. This was  a "scout" alewife. They are often seen inland days or weeks before the runs begins. Do they return to the school in the bay and report conditions? Who and how are scouts selected from the school?  Are they male or female? 
There is so much we (I) don't know about river herring.

With the high tides changing later each day combined with the warm sunny forecast, I would not be surprised if we start seeing small schools of alewife moving in in the coming days. They have always run late in Muscongus Brook starting late May when the high tides are at dusk.

Fish Counters Needed

The Alewives are running in Waldoboro and one of the tasks at hand is counting them as they swim up the Medomak River. Fish counting coordinator Lincoln Smith is looking for volunteers. If you have a few extra hours between 8 am and 6pm and would like to get outdoors please give Lincoln Smith a call at 832-5570. Counting is done in 2 hour shifts off the Mill Street Bridge in Waldoboro.

Do we fertilize our lawns?

A recent statewide survey conducted by a Maine market research firm found that over 61% of Mainers do not fertilize their lawns which is good news for Maine’s lakes, rivers, streams, and estuaries where fertilizer washed off lawns can contribute to algal blooms and poor water quality.

This news is also consistent with recent research showing most lawns over 10 years old don’t need a lot of chemicals. As Laura Wilson from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service explains, “If your lawn looks healthy without fertilizers, do not fertilize; it is a waste of money. Most lawns over 10 years old do not need fertilizers, if you leave the clippings. The clippings provide a source of slow release nitrogen and adequate phosphorus for your lawn.”

Most lawns don’t need phosphorus. “Over 80% of lawns tested in the past 5 years did not need any additional phosphorus,” notes Wilson. “Reducing or eliminating phosphorus also prevents harm to neighborhood lakes, streams and rivers

Barbara Welch, who runs Maine’s Phosphorus-Free Fertilizer program at the Department of Environmental Protection explains, “Phosphorus controls a lake’s water quality. Keep phosphorus out and you have clear water. Add phosphorus and you get plant growth in the form of tiny algae that can turn lakes, streams and even some rivers green and scummy.”

For these reasons, the Maine legislature passed a law that took effect 2 years ago requiring stores that sell fertilizers containing phosphorus (this includes most starter fertilizers) to post a sign. The sign discourages the use of phosphorus lawn products unless reseeding, starting a new lawn, or results of soil test show phosphorus is needed. The statewide survey found that among those who use phosphorus-free fertilizer, practically all (89%) are satisfied with the look and condition of their lawn.

Wilson gives advice on when to apply fertilizers - not before spring green-up or later than September 15th. Early spring fertilizing feeds the weeds more than the grass. The best time to fertilize is around Labor Day weekend to get the grass strong going into winter. Avoid fertilizing in the midsummer when the grass may be stressed with hot, dry conditions.

Gary Fish of the Maine YardScaping Partnership says, "One of the best things you can do when applying fertilizer is get any stray particles off the sidewalk, driveway and street and back onto the lawn. Fertilizer granules or grass clippings on these surfaces can easily get washed into the storm drain or ditch and can end up polluting our precious lakes, rivers and bays.”

To see how Bremen stacks up against the state please take the poll on the right hand side of the blog.

For more information on safe, healthy lawns visit the Maine Board of Pesticides YardScaping web site http://www.yardscaping.org/lawn/six-steps.htm and County Cooperative Extension offices. For phosphorus free fertilizer information go to http://www.maine.gov/dep/blwq/doclake/fert/phospage.htm

David's Update 5-17-10

A  strange year for alewife runs in Maine, and to the south. What started as unusually early runs (April 4th in Jefferson) in parts of Maine, has found them somewhat standoff-ish in many other runs in the mid-coast lately. Muscongus Brook in Bremen has always started late; around Memorial Day. During high tides lately the harbor will show a couple of cormorants and sometimes loons, diving with purpose. An osprey and eagle have been reported near the mouth of the brook. A great blue heron well up into the brook may signify a few scout alewife have already explored a bit inland. I see nothing, but I trust the birds.

I plan to install the fish ladder tomorrow morning, Tue the 18th.  The water in the brook is running at a trickle today with the recent dry spell.  Good conditions for working below the RT 32 culvert.

I hung a few "no taking alewives" signs along the brook recently. I hated doing this, but I have heard some folks are already looking for these alewives as a bait supplement.  If any alewives run the brook, they will be at least 5 years old. This makes these fish survivors of previous runs, and therefor their genetics crucially important to the future of Webber Ponds alewife population.

Not So Slick

It was morning when I noticed a pair of wood ducks flapping their wings near our shore and yet for some reason not flying. They just flapped and paddled their wings on the water. The ice had let out of the pond almost a week before and many waterfowl had been moving through. No sign of loons yet and there was a dusting of fresh snow. I’d never seen ducks act quite like that before.

Our power was out because of the storm, as were most of Bremen and much of the coast. There were trees down, wires down, roads closed, and roads flooded. This had been an historic storm the like of which we are told to expect with more frequency. The ducks appeared to be in trouble. I went for a closer examination.

With having only taken a few steps toward the pond I was struck with a strong aroma. This was a smell that was so familiar, yet far out of place by the shore of Webber Pond. The closer I approached the pond, the more concentrated the toxic sent. It reminded me of paint thinner. I had a terrible feeling and the wood ducks did not look right.

I now saw the problem; or at least part of it. There, creating a horrible, iridescent slick on the surface of the pond, as far as I could see, lay a film of oil. Oil, as far as I could see on the pond! Oil was actually and unbelievably in dear, pristine Webber Pond. I felt a sickness I find hard to express in words. I’ll never forget the moment of dread when I realized there was no practical way this environmental tragedy could be undone. I needed to make a phone call.

The Maine DEP response team arrived by early afternoon. They were quick to determine the slick was caused by kerosene or #2 fuel oil. We immediately began to seek the source. A pink colored tinge to the snow along part of the waters edge eventually led the team to the cause.

A single gallon of kerosene will kill fish in one million gallons of water. In more dilute forms it will cause cancers in reptiles, amphibians, birds and fish. You don’t want to know what it will do to people exposed to it long term. The water in Webber would likely not recover for decades if as much as 20 gallons of fuel oil made it into it. It was a horrible discovery when the MEDEP team member found the empty 125 gallon fuel tank with a severed fuel line. This was at a summer camp and the line was simply cut by a limb falling from a tree during the storm. This was a completely preventable misfortune. The wood ducks would likely die. I knew more wildlife would as well.

The above scenario did not actually happen…..yet. It is still waiting to happen or it might still be prevented. It’s our choice. Of all the burdens we place on Webber by living on its shore, I fear fuel spills the most. A cheap fix could prevent an accident like this. Your fuel company can install guards over the fuel line. Covering the tank entirely with a solid structure is better still. Are there trees over your fuel tank? Still better would be to move the tank inside. Ideally, eliminating fuel oils from your pond side property is best. Propane or fire wood are quite LakeSmart fuels.

What is LakeSmart? It is a Maine Department of Environmental Protection program designed to improve water quality in Maine’s ponds. We are fortunate to have a few trained property inspectors in Bremen. Several properties on Webber Pond were inspected last summer and 2 properties won the coveted LakeSmart award. These proud LakeSmart property owners are Steve and Jo Laurich and Bob Wheeler. We’d love to see more properties inspected this summer.

A little shy about an inspection? It is painless, anonymous, voluntary, and free. It is more of an informational meeting than judgment. The inspections look for a good vegetative buffer between your property and the water. They will look at outside fuel storage and a cursory look at your septic system (this will come with a reminder to pump your tank every 2-3 years). Driveways and paths will be scrutinized as they contribute to siltation. Short grass lawns are frowned upon. Perhaps the least we could do is to take a small quiet step to reduce our impact on the pond this summer.

I am not an inspector and would however be happy to share with you what I have learned. http://www.maine.gov/dep/blwq/doclake/lakesmart/

Contributing Writer - David Wilkins

Check out David Wilkins' Bremen Alewife Restoration Project Page

The BCC welcomes David Wilkins as a contributing writer covering the restoration of Bremen alewives to Webber Pond. Find out all the latest on our fish friends as they attempt passage and learn more about this important conservation project. Click on the page tab above for more!

Invasive Insect Volunteer Training Program

The Maine Department of Agriculture and the Maine Forest Service will conduct a volunteer training session to spread awareness about the Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB) and the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB).  ALB and EAB are invasive pests that pose serious threats to the trees and forests of Maine.  The best defense is early detection by people who work with trees and those who enjoy the outdoors.

To find out more about ALB, visit www.albmaine.org 
For more info on EAB, visit www.emeralddashborer.info

When: Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Time: 9 am - 3pm
Where: Rockland Public Library Rockland, Maine

Cost: Free, including lunch, snacks and materials