CWMA Cookbook: A Recipe for Success

1. CWMA Cookbook: A Recipe for Success A Step-by step Guide on How to Develop a Cooperative Weed Management Area in the Eastern United States Ellen Jacquart Indiana Chapter of The Nature Conservancy Kelly Kearns Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

2. Workshop Agenda • Welcome & Introductions • What is a Cooperative Weed Management Area? • Why Form a CWMA? • Some Eastern CWMA examples • Organizing a CWMA • Funding Opportunities and Other Resources • Contacts and authorities in Eastern states • Questions

3. What is a CWMA? The term CWMA, or Cooperative Weed Management Area, refers to a local organization that integrates all invasive plant management resources across jurisdictional boundaries in order to benefit entire communities.

4. What is a CWMA? • Local weed management organization • Led by a steering committee • Formally organized under agreement • Facilitates cooperation and coordination • Networks across all jurisdictional boundaries A CWMA is a formal agreement between parties that can be a long-term strategy for a long-term problem.

5. There is no one right way…. There is no one right way to form a CWMA and no formal certification of such groups. No matter how a partnership was formed or what it is called, it is considered a CWMA if it has all these elements - • Local weed management organization • Led by a steering committee • Formally organized under agreement • Facilitates cooperation and coordination • Networks across all jurisdictional boundaries

6. What do CWMAs do? Education – Awareness

7. What do CWMAs do? Prevention Boot Brush Stations

8. What do CWMAs do? Early Detection – Rapid Response Photos by: Barry A Rice, The Nature Conservancy. Downloaded from: http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/Puermont.htm

9. What do CWMAs do? Monitoring Polygonum perfoliatum (mile-a-minute). Photo by:Britt Slattery, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Dowloaded from www.invasive.org

10. What do CWMAs do? Integrated Pest Management

11. Why Form a CWMA? • They cross boundaries • CWMAs allow partners to share and leverage limited resources • CWMAs are highly visible • Focuses attention • Reduces the risk of control efforts • Provides an early detection and rapid response network • Helps secure funding

12. Why Form a CWMA? NFWF – Pulling Together Initiative funding 1.2 1 0.8 2004 Mean $ per mi^2 2005 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 Mid- Atlantic Great Plains Midwest New England Northwest Southeast Southwest

13. Some Current CWMAs in the East • Long Island Invasive Species Management Area (NY) • Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program (NY) • St. Lawrence – E. Lake Ontario WMA (NY) • Clay County WMA (MN) • River to River WMA (IL) • Northwoods WMA (WI) • Additional CWMAs forming in Missouri, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin

14. The CWMA ApproachLong Island Invasive Species MA • Formed in 2001 • Along with Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program, has served as a model for the St. Lawrence – Eastern Lake Ontario Weed Management Area (SLELO), and additional developing WMAs in NY

15. Long Island Invasive Species MAAccomplishments Year 1: • Strategic plan written • List of invasive plant species prepared and categorized • Weed Watchers started Photo from: http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/projects/newyork.html

16. Long Island Invasive Species MAAccomplishments Year 2: • Assisted in drafting legislation for Invasive Species Task Force for NY • Mapped weeds in 800-acre Pine Barrens Core Preserve • NYS Landscape and Nursery Association adopted Codes of Conduct (for more information, see www.centerforplantconservation.org/invasives/codesN.html) • Wipe out Weeds poster contest in elementary schools • Early Detection/Rapid Response carried out on sites of giant hogweed, black swallow-wort, mile-a-minute vine, and others • Researched herbicides for use against black swallow-wort

17. Long Island Invasive Species MAPartners • National Park Service • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service • Brookhaven National Laboratory • Natural Resource Conservation Service • NY State Department of Transportation • NY Department of Environmental Conservation • NY Office of Parks, Recreation, & Historic Preservation • City of New York Parks & Recreation • Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County • Suffolk County Dept. of Parks, Recreation, and Conservation • Nassau County Department of Parks, Recreation, and Museums • Suffolk County Community College • Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center • Long Island Nursery and Landscape Association • Long Island Central Pine Barrens Commission • Open Space Preservation Trust • Brooklyn Botanic Garden • The Nature Conservancy

18. The CWMA ApproachAdirondack Park Invasive Plant Program • Includes 6 million acres of public and private land • Large diverse landscapes, intact ecosystems, high quality natural communities • Threatened by invasive, non-native plants • Coordinates 2 projects: • Terrestrial Invasive Plant Project • Aquatic Invasive Plant Project

19. Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program Terrestrial Invasive Plant Project – started 1998 Uses volunteers for inventory and control. Inventory efforts concentrate along roadways (likely areas to find invaders) and backcountry areas (sensitive areas) The Adirondack Nature Conservancy Invasive Species Field Coordinator organizes and supervises work parties to cut, dig, pull or herbicide terrestrial invasive plants Photos from Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program website: www.adkinvasives.com

20. Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program Terrestrial Invasive Plant Project Partners • Adirondack Nature Conservancy (ANC) • NYS Adirondack Park Agency (APA) • NYS Department of Transportation (DOT) • NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)

21. Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program Aquatic Invasive Plant Project • Started 2001 • Adopted a "core-community" strategy to facilitate monitoring and information exchange • Provides a focus for volunteer recruitment and support • Summarizes and disseminates known distributions of aquatic invasive plants in the Adirondack Park Map from Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program website: www.adkinvasives.com

22. Adirondack Park Invasive Plant Program Aquatic Invasive Plant Project Partners • Adirondack Park Agency • NYS Dept. of Conservation • Adirondack Nature Conservancy • Franklin County Network of Shoreline Associations • Paul Smith College

23. The CWMA ApproachClay County, MN WMA • The Clay County Weed Management Area includes Flowing, Keene, Skree, and Elkton Townships in northwest Minnesota.

24. Clay County, MN WMA Goals • Development of a baseline inventory/GIS spatial dataset • Containment and targeted IPM treatments • Aggressive treatment of any emerging priority weed threats throughout the county • Public education including prevention, reporting emerging problems, and field tours highlighting successful IPM techniques. Photo by Angela Anderson, Minnesota DNR. Downloaded from http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives /terrestrialplants/woody/siberianelm.html

25. Clay County, MN WMA Partners • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service • University of Minnesota Extension • Minnesota Department of Agriculture • Minnesota Department of Natural Resources • Minnesota Department of Transportation • The Nature Conservancy • Concordia College • DuPont • BASF • Dow Chemicals

26. The CWMA ApproachRiver to River CWMA, IL

27. River to River CWMA Goals Between 1 Jan 2006 and 30 April 2007: • Hire a coordinator • Formalize the partnership with a fully executed MOU • Provide noxious weed workshop(s) for private landowners, garden/nursery owners, city/county/state Dept. Of Transportation employees, etc. • Hold a minimum of 3 public meetings to solicit comments and inform private citizens of the CWMA and its activities • Develop a strategic plan for the CWMA to determine long term direction. • Identify and seek out available grants and other funding

28. River to River CWMA Partners • Illinois Dept. of Natural Resources • Shawnee National Forest • Crab Orchard NWR • Cypress Creek NWR • Illinois Dept. of Transportation • USDA - APHIS • Natural Resource Conservation Service • The Nature Conservancy • Southern Illinois University - Center of Ecology • Shawnee Resource Conservation & Development Council

29. The CWMA ApproachNorthwoods CWMA (WI) • History – Several years as larger Northwoods Weed Initiative, a PTI grant for leafy spurge control helped form the CWMA • Region – Ashland, Bayfield, Douglas, and Iron Counties, far northern WI

30. Northwoods CWMA (WI) Primary Objectives: • To prevent new invaders from taking hold in the area • To control new and invading species • To contain and manage existing populations that have already become established

31. Northwoods CWMA (WI) Partners • Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission • Chequamegon/Nicolet National Forest • National Park Service • Natural Resource Conservation Service • Ashland, Bayfield, Douglas Co. Land Cons. District • The Nature Conservancy • US Fish and Wildlife Service • University of Wisconsin Extension • Wisconsin DNR • Bad River Chippewa Band

32. The CWMA Approach CWMAs may use different approaches, and have different projects, but they all benefit from the formal partnership provided by a CWMA.

33. Organizing a CWMA • Choose an initial leader or champion • Find someone who is excited about cooperative weed management to lead the group as it forms • Good communicator • Ability to motivate others • Goals of the CWMA must be their first priority The CWMA champion should lead only until the CWMA is fully organized and operating. A chairperson and vice-chairperson should then assume leadership responsibilities. Photo by Ellen Jacquart, The Nature Conservancy

34. Organizing a CWMA • Establish geographic boundaries • Political boundaries, e.g. one or several counties • Ecological boundaries, e.g. watersheds • Consider organizing a large CWMA into smaller administrative subunits such as basins, watersheds, or management zones The Long Island Invasive Species Management Area is organized according to county boundaries. Map by Kathy L. Schwager, Invasive Species Specialist The Nature Conservancy on Long Island

35. Organizing a CWMA • Identify potential partners and begin building support • Participation from each major land management entity within the boundaries of the CWMA is critical • Involve the following entities if they are available in your CWMA area: • County Weed Supervisors • Resource Conservation and Development Councils (RC&Ds) • Soil & Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) • Convey the importance to potential partners of using cooperative efforts to address shared problems

36. Organizing a CWMA • Determine common goals • Different individuals or groups in your area may have different reasons for concerns about invasive plants • A CWMA may form around the common desire to control: • a specific species such as garlic mustard • a group of invaders such as woody invaders of forests • a common concern such as early detection of new invaders Garlic mustard bloom Photo by Ellen Jacquart, The Nature Conservancy Find at least one common concern and focus on it to initiate a CWMA.

37. Organizing a CWMA • Choose a CWMA fiscal manager • Need to establish fiscal capabilities to receive grants • Need a federal tax ID number • Possibly enlist a county or a Resource Conservation and Development Council (RC&D) as the fiscal manager . Photo by Ellen Jacquart, The Nature Conservancy

38. Organizing a CWMA • Hold a public meeting • Invite all partners • Invite all major landowners and stakeholders within your established boundaries • Increase participation and support for your CWMA A successful CWMA includes many agencies and individuals all working towards a common goal.

39. Organizing a CWMA • Establish a steering committee • Sets priorities • Provides direction • Establishes operating procedures • Locates opportunities • Furthers the common goal of the CWMA Aquatic Weed Identification Training Workshop, LIISMA, July 2003. Photo courtesy of Marilyn Jordan, Long Island Invasive Species Management Area.

40. Organizing a CWMA The selection of officers for the CWMA should not be as important as overall steering committee activity. The goal is to move from leadership by one person to leadership by the entire steering committee. 8. Select a chairperson and a vice-chairperson • Ensures that all committee members have opportunities to participate • Should not be domineering • Be a good administrator • Delegate responsibility for project accountability • Should be in position for a minimum of two years

41. Organizing a CWMA 9.Develop an agreement (see attachments) • Identify the partners and their responsibilities • Establish the legal authority(s) under which the agreement is made • Define the purpose • List items of agreement and responsibilities of each partner • Describe land area covered under the agreement The Northwoods CWMA group after signing their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

42. Organizinga CWMA 9. Develop an agreement (continued) The purpose of an agreement is to facilitate cooperation across jurisdictional boundaries and eliminate administrative barriers. • Items of agreement should also specify organizational components including: • The group of partners (board) • Steering committee • Strategic plan • Annual operating plan • Reports

43. Organizing a CWMA 9. Develop an agreement (continued) Develop Hold Harmless Agreements (see attachments) - • Forms for landowners or agencies to sign to allow others to come on to their property to do control work (look for an example at www.mipn.org, CWMA page) • Workers, partners and landowners are “held harmless” in case of any problems arising • Allows sharing of workers, equipment, supplies • Minimizes bureaucracy

44. Organizing a CWMA 10. Develop a strategic management plan • Clearly define CWMA objectives and priorities in a plan, including: • An accurate map of the CWMA • An inventory and a map of known priorityinvasive • plant infestations • Determine management responsibilities including the establishment of management areas or zones • Establish criteria for prioritization of invasive plant management activities • Identify control techniques and resources available to your CWMA

45. Organizing a CWMA • Develop an annual operating plan • Annual projects • Expected in-kind contributions • Necessary funding • Personnel needed • Serves as basis for outside grant requests Identifies annual priorities and associated work projects.

46. Organizing a CWMA 12. Establish and utilize standing and ad hoc committees • Increases participation by partners and citizens • that are not on the steering committee • Broadens the base of ownership inside the • community • Perform tasks that will give more time for the • steering committee to devote toward coordination • and administrative duties.

47. Organizing a CWMA 12. Establish and utilize standing and ad hoc committees (continued) • Standing committees: • Long term • Work on issues like education, control, monitoring, etc. • Ad hoc committees: - Temporary • Focus on specific projects Photo by Donna R. Ellis, Univ. of Connecticut, Invasive Plants of the US CD-Rom.

48. Organizing a CWMA • Implement plans Education • Support and promote Invasive Species Awareness events at the state and federal level • Many states sponsor “Invasive Species Awareness Month” in June • “National Invasive Weed Awareness Week” is held in late February each year

49. Organizing a CWMA Examples of Education Projects: • Teach a weed identification class for land owners and land managers • Develop educational materials on invasive species for grade school classes in your area • Create “Most Wanted” posters School children dressed as common periwinkle, garlic mustard, and multiflora rose. Photo by Stori Snyder and Stacy Duke, Invasive Species Education Project, Hilltop Garden and Nature Center and Hoosier National Forest.

50. Organizing a CWMA 13. Implement plans (continued) Prevention • Boot Brush Stations – placed at entry points to natural areas. For more information about this project idea, go to www.mipn.org and click on Prevention. • Be a Good Neighbor – Rid Your Landscaping of Invaders.