Scope of Work The State’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Lake Champlain Water Chestnut Management Program involves mechanical harvesting and handpulling to remove water chestnut plants before they reach maturity. Both methods will be used. DEC will implement and oversee the program through contracts with selected vendors. When available, State’s staff, technicians and additional work crews will work in tandem with the contracted crews. This element of the DEC Lake Champlain Water Chestnut Management Program: Main Lake Champlain Harvesting with Motorboat Support will have three subcomponents. The main focus will be on the removal of water chestnut by hand from Lake Champlain, including adjoining wetlands and tributaries. All locations between Lake Converse and Cedar Bay accessed through the Converse Bay VT Fish and Wildlife Boat Access (44.295780, -73.291777) located in Charlotte, VT to Benson Landing Vermont Fish and Wildlife Boat Access (43.72879, -73.367284) located in Orwell, VT are included in this component of the management plan (approximately 1,000+ acres). The second component is to survey and harvest at sites that have historic large populations of water chestnut that includes: East Creek, Whitney Creek, and Dead Creek. When appropriate and directed by State’s staff, work in tandem with other contracted crews at Little Otter Creek, Fort Ticonderoga Bay and the LaChute River, and Bulwagga Bay. The third component will be to gain access to, survey and hand harvest at ten (10) other water bodies where management efforts are ongoing. These include Brookside Pond, Coggman Creek, Coggman Pond, Horton Pond, Lemon Fair River, Parsons Mill Pond, Pelkey’s Swamp, Phillips Pond, Richville Pond, and Root Pond. Since Lake Champlain flows north, the natural spread of water chestnut is in a northerly direction. To stop further spreading, the northern most areas of infestation are typically targeted at the beginning of the season, with the work progressing south along both the Vermont and New York shorelines. Water levels, weather and other environmental conditions can influence project locations and management timing.
