You don't want to clean your boat? OK fine (as in $10G)

From left a Fall 2015 chart depicting European Naiad infestation, a sign you'll likely see at your local boat ramp and the European Naiad. (Courtesy photos)

©With lake ice rapidly retreating and temperatures on the rise, it's a sure bet jet skis and bass boats will be back on Milton Three Ponds, but boaters beware: Wash your watercraft before going in or risk up to a $10,000 fine.

It's all part of the battle against the nefarious aquatic weed European Naiad, which threatens native lake vegetation and fish, ultimately perhaps the very existence of Milton Three Ponds and declining lakefront property values in Milton and Lebanon.

One of the pointmen in this battle against the Naiad is Sean Skillings, the vice commander of Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 24. One of his duties is to do voluntary boat safety inspections, so it was natural for the Milton resident to take up anti-Naiad education, outreach and enforcement as well.

One of the first differences boaters will see this year is a wash station at Milton Town Beach, where boaters whose hulls are unclean will have to give their boat a bath.

Sean Skillings

"If they don't wash it they don't go in, and if they go in anyway, we'll have the police on speed dial," Skillings said on Friday.

The European Naiad was first discovered in Milton Three Ponds in the fall of 2015. It is most prevalent in Northeast Pond and to a lesser degree in the channel between Northeast and Depot ponds.

Milton has already authorized funds to battle the Naiad, and Lebanon voters will have a chance to authorize additional funds at May 9 voting.

Both New Hampshire and Maine departments of environmental protection have also helped in the effort as well as the Milton Three Ponds Protective Association.

Last year divers tried to stem the tide of the Naiad threat by pulling plants manually, but the effort hardly made a dent. In fact, the Naiad is now more entrenched in much of Northeast Pond.

This year an extremely expensive but relatively safe herbicide will be used in some of the densest infestations. The $12,000 will cover the treating just 7 percent of Northeast Pond, Skillings said.

One of the chief ways Naiad gets into the water is on boat hulls. It can also attach itself to fishing lines and gear, anchors and boat trailers, and it's not easily seen.

"One seed could fit on a pinhead," Skillings noted, adding that everything has to be cleaned on a boat, inside and out, to ensure no additional seeds get into Milton Three Ponds.

In personal watercraft, the Naiad can even get sucked into the jet ski outtake and require a pressure washer to dislodge the seeds, which can lie dormant but still alive for two weeks out of water.

"Yeah, it's almost indestructible, like a cockroach," Skillings said.

And for the record, each plant can carry 500,000 seeds.

Skillings is also asking all major boat entry points like Mi-Te-Jo campground, Everetts Cove Marina and Fernald Shore to put up signs provided by New Hampshire and Maine that spell out boaters' responsibility.

The mantra "Clean, Drain, Dry" is front and center on the signs.

As a convenience there will be a wash station at Milton Town Beach where boaters can make sure they're OK to enter the water. Staff will chronicle the hull numbers and that the boat is clean.

Offenders can be subject to up to a $10,000 fine and impounding of the boat.

"This stuff is as destructive as milfoil. I'm volunteering my time, because I don't want my pond polluted," said Skillings, noting that up in Rangely, Maine, it took a 10-year-effort to get rid of milfoil.

Skillings said the aggressiveness of the Naiad, which is an annual plant, could be compared to mint when it takes over an herb garden.

Another challenge is that the European Naiad can't necessarily be spotted on top of the water, but must be observed below the water line.

Spotters have to look down in the water, using polarized sun glasses, to positively identify the plant, which is similar in appearance to the ponds' native naiad, which is beneficial.

Bob Myrick, president of the TPPA, said the European Naiad, however, is different in at least two ways. Its leaves curl on itself rather that lay flat, and its leaves have sawtooth edges while the native Naiad's are smooth.

Spotters have to be careful not to disturb potential European Naiad as just brushing against them can release thousands of seeds into the water.

Myrick will likely be organizing a team of volunteer spotters once again this year that will monitor the Naiad presence.

Meanwhile, as part of his informational blitz, Skillings said it is vital to reach out to lakefront owners who may invite visitors to bring their boats for the weekend.

"It's important that they follow the same rules," he said.
Added to the conundrum is that many of those seasonal home owners live in Massachusetts and may not even be aware of the Naiad problem. They have to be brought up to speed quickly upon arrival in a couple of months, Skillings said.

Milton Three Ponds comprises nearly 1,200 acres spread out over three ponds and what's known as the channel, or river, that connects Northeast Pond to Depot Pond.

State environmental agencies in both New Hampshire and Maine are taking the leads in attempting to eradicate the plant, which is usually done in a couple of ways.

The plants can be pulled out by professionals and then sucked out by machines or large tarps can be stretched over them to block out sunlight necessary for their survival. The tarps provide ample space for fish and other aquatic life to escape.

Now with the herbicide option in play, it gives the region an even better chance to tackle the Naiad before it can do irreparable harm.