Delta Weeds

Looking at their chart of which product controls what, I don't see our favorite targets. Other language on the site speaks of control measures on "your pond". Methinks these products probably aren't aimed at river systems. Additionally, I note their cautionary language to consult with state authorities--I can guess what the result of that would be.

BTG
 
Yes, they appear to work in fresh water, but the heart of the delta is slowly moving fresh water as mandated by Congress. The local weeds are not specified but talking with them it seems they would work. And yes again, I hate consultants, especially the kind that don't anchor in Mildred or the Reach. Unfortunatel I am not in the vicinity to test. Gees, the people in LA would go crazy. That is an interesting thought as they know how to control the weeds, but maybe they won't to protect southern Ca.
 
You would be right B.T.G. Just to clarify what most already know, please do not put anything into the water without consulting the proper entities. For better or worse, we are fortunate enough to live in a state that makes it difficult to put anything into the waterways. Believe me, you do not want the headache if you are caught doing so. What most people do not realize is the hoops we have to jump through in order to treat any of these invasives. That is on top of the pre and post treatment monitoring we do as well. Anyone curious about the process is free to ask and I will do my best to give the best info possible. On a related note, we just finished a large treatment in Frank's tract. We hope to see some results in the next few months. Keep your fingers crossed.
 
Spoken like a true bureaucrat. Stop wagging your finger and start cleaning up the water. It started in 1776 with taxes and it can happen again.
 
Thank you dugsboat, nice to meet you as well. I will take all comments, negative as well as positive. I am not sure where finger wagger and bureaucrat fits, but I asked for it posting on here. It is a difficult position that I put myself in by allowing myself to be open to name calling. It was brought up when I asked to post on here, but I assured my management I could handle it. I worked for a number of years in the field as an applicator and I can tell you that we were either loved or hated. I have worked from the bottom and up and have seen it first hand. It is a thankless job and I can assure you, that most of those doing the work love and have an interest in the Delta. That being said, I again offer any help that I may give to you. I promise not to finger wag. I think that a revolution fought over weed control would be a first.
 
Thanks for the info, Paul. I'll try to take a look at Franks Tract this year to see if there are any changes.

I think I can speak for most of us who participate on this forum in welcoming your contributions and thanking you for your work to improve the natural environment of the California Delta.

It must be pretty difficult to come up with an herbicide that is both effective and selective for underwater weeds. Consider that there is relatively little natural environment left in the Delta. The best that can be done in most cases is come up with a man-made ecosystem that will do some good for remaining native species.

Mildred Is. went under water very recently. It used to be farmland, before that it was tule. Who knows what we should do with it now? Mildred is probably too deep to be filled in and reclaimed as tule marsh.

There may be a natural slough that formed the original channel for 3-River Reach, but what we have now is an old dredged backwater that is silting up and growing weeds.

I wish everything was as easy getting some Round-Up and spraying the water hyacinth from above the water line, but a lot of study had to be done before that happened. It’s not a good idea to dump a broad-spectrum herbicide in the water without doing some homework first, unless we want some more unpleasant surprises.

Thanks for the informed contributions!

P.S. Now that I'm thinking about it... A little dredging of 3-River Reach would make the boaters who want to anchor there and enjoy the area a lot happier. A couple of 15' deep channels down the length of the reach would allow weed-free anchoring with minimal environmental effects. It's a relatively cheap solution, too. Leave the shore lines and shallows alone and let nature take it's course there.
 
Thanks Yzer. Don't get me wrong, Dugsboats comments are very important to me as well. I just want people to understand the delicate balance we deal with. I have been face to face with people yelling at me about what we are doing. What I have found that if you let people vent, most will listen to what you have to say once all has settled down. You can either come to a compromise or agree to disagree. It can be a challenge to defend the whole state of California at time, but you find it comes with the territory. We have done some amazing hyperspectral studies in Frank's over the years and we are all hoping that this years will show the impact we are making. This is the first time we have tried treating this amount of Egeria Densa. As you well know, if can succeed in Frank's, we can succeed anywhere. I will find some way of sharing these studies once they become available for all interested.
 
Glad to hear it. You'll find no shortage of informed opinions on this forum, that's for sure. We all like to vent from time to time, too. I hope things work out with egeria densa in Franks Tract. That was a fine fishing area back in the day.
 
Paul,

It is good to hear that a plan is in place for Franks Tract. As a long time fan of Hal Schell, I do have to correct you on your spelling though .... Franks has no apostrophe. This was one of Hal's pet peeves and I guess I'm still carrying his torch. Your post intimates that Franks Tract is sort of a test, if it is successful, will they be deploying the same strategy in other ares that have been affected, like Mildred Island?

Thanks agin for your posts, it is nice to have an insider posting here.
 
My understanding is that Franks Tract is still a wonderful fishing area, but not for bait fishing or trolling anymore. Now fly fishing for stripper and bass fishing seem to be very popular. In fact the "weeds" seem to be a great place for the fish to hide out and feed. But it sure is lousy for boating!
I'm looking forward to seeing if conditions change in Franks Tract. Since my slip is on Piper Slu, it will be easy for me to keep an eye on it!
 
Thanks Dave. Franks it is. Count me as a fan of Hal as well. I agree that the weeds are a great place for fish to hang out, but, weeds also use oxygen. Once the dissolved oxygen is too low, bye bye fish. Another problem is that these weeds block sunlight from getting to the plants that need it, this in turn promotes algae growth. Algae also uses a great deal, of, you guessed it, oxygen. If this does work, the big question that I have is what part aquatic plants that are native to that area going to play? It will be interesting to watch and see.
 
There is no plant native to the California Delta that will fill the same ecological niche as egeria densa. That’s because there was hardly any 2-10 ft. deep stagnant brackish water in the Delta prior to 1936.

Before construction of the Friant Dam during WW2 and massive agricultural water diversions from the San Joaquin River beginning early in the twentieth century, the California Delta was a fresh water system. We know by historical record that the cities of Pittsburgh and Antioch pumped their entire fresh water municipal drinking water supply from the river without treatment. That happened for nearly 80 years until 1936, when the combination of a severe drought year and agricultural diversions from the San Joaquin River made it necessary for those two cities and the C&H sugar refinery to travel 10-15 miles upstream to pump and transport fresh water. This was the first recorded intrusion of salt water in the Delta upstream of Antioch.

Farming on drained Delta islands began in the 1870’s. We know that farmers found no residual salt in the Delta soils, and could farm them with Delta water. No desalinization of soil or water required.

Today, 50% of the total Sacramento River flow is diverted and never reaches San Francisco Bay. Nearly 100% of the San Joaquin River is diverted.

Meandering river, creek and slough beds predominated in Delta tule marshes. Central Delta beds were usually peat muck, otherwise gravel beds were the norm. Salmon spawned freely in the gravel. In fact, the San Joaquin River was the mouth of one of the world’s largest salmon producing river systems, draining the southern Sierra Nevada from Stockton to Bakersfield. The Sacramento Delta ran unimpeded from the bay to well north of the Shasta River and drained the northern Sierra Nevada.

Soil erosion from placer mining, agriculture and urban development made the mud stream bottoms we find today.

So, when you talk about finding a native water plant that will grow in stagnant brackish Delta water, you are talking about a species alien to the historical Delta. Strangely enough, nature is selecting from species alien to the Delta to fill new ecological niches.

Read: The San Joaquin, A River Betrayed by Gene Rose. Published by Quill Driver Books/Word Dancer Press, Inc. 1992-2000 by Eugene A. Rose.
 
???? for Flutterby -- What fly do I use to catch a stripper?

for PKJR -- Why did it take so many years to get the Egeria control effort to the field testing stage? I believe the herbicide was available when DBW began its research (can;t recall the year). Warren
 
We have been field testing treatments for egeria now for about 4-5 years, just in smaller plots scattered about the Delta. Things such as money, crew availability, and etc went into deciding where. As you can imagine, treatments are extremely expensive. Franks treatment this year was in the 7 figures. Money does come from taxes (See above), and with a budget, treatments have to be carefully planned. Everyone wants the weeds gone, but where do we get the money???? Franks was chosen mainly because of the amount of infestation.
 
quote:
Originally posted by xyzabc

???? for Flutterby -- What fly do I use to catch a stripper? Warren
Click to expand...


I have no idea since I do not fly fish. However, I'd suggest you stop in to Hook, Line and Sinker at Russo's Marina sometime. The fly fisherman are thick as mosquitoes out of there during the fall and winter. On a calm day [no wind, no rain], the conditions are ideal! During those times, there are professional guides which go out with clients. I think they also use Sugar Barge Marina as a staging area.

I googled for this website:
http://www.flyfishnorcal.org/php-nuke/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=158
 
Thanks Flutterby. How times have changed. Guess a Crek Chub with a chunk of sardine on a spreader with a barrel weight won't cut it any more.

For PKJR -- I guess we are reaping the results of a lack of will, commitment and sense of urgency in dealing with E.G. There was a lot of screaming by boaters about the deplorable situation. I screamed too, but that was all. Couldn't figure out what else to do. I never heard a single appeal for funding to tackle the problem. When the original educational meetings were held, I assumed the situation was in overdrive. Warren
 
Paul,
I too look forward to seeing an improvement in Franks Tract. I imagine that no one crosses it more than I on a year round basis. You may have seen my red towboats in the area. I have noticed a few early patches of the weed at low tide in more areas that 3 weeks ago.
Fingers Crossed!!
 
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