CRISP Meeting Minutes
AttendeesChris Zimmerman, The Nature Conservancy
Travis O’Dell
Barb Hammerstone, USDA APHIS
Theresa Murphy-CRISP
Molly Marquand-CRISP
Rick Burstell CCE
Donna Vogler- SUNY Oneonta
Jamie Meyers, NPS
Meredith Taylor - NYCDEP
Heather Bowman- Frost Valley
Alan White- Catskill Center
Kerissa Fuccillo- Ashokan Center
Erin Brady- DEC
Roundtable Updates:
Molly- CRISP has a new outreach intern Samira Dere. CRISP has been helping ongoing EAB parasitoid release work with
USDA-APHIS and NYSDAM since June. All contracts are on schedule and are being executed successfully. Giant
hogweed work wrapped up. Beginning to organize ash seed collection workshops with the Mid Atlantic Regional Seed
bank and other partners for the fall.
Chris- Working on peer review process for IPMDAT.
Rick- Reports that there is lots of woodpecker damage, ‘Woolly Adelgid and EAB doublewhammy’. Rick- iMap Invasives
Training at Oneonta on July 17 12 to 4. Mentioned Mark Whitmore and striking up interest in rural counties. Also
mentions letters of agreement problems. Parks pooling resources for 20 percent pesticide for Japanese stiltgrass.
Donna- Dealing with marsh thistle. Their interns at the field station working on model of leading edge of infestation.
States that there is a Madison County survey in the works. Spending this month defining where in Schoharie County
infestation is spreading. Mentioned poster at International Congress for Conservation Biology meeting in Baltimore.
Jamie- Details the success of the water steward training. It is the second year of this program.
Group of private landowners concerned about Japanese knotweed in the upper Delaware. In 150 interviews apparently
around half were aware of didymo. Jamie will be soWorkshop on July 20 th with private landowners in which Jamie is
speaking.
Meredith- Boat steward programs on weekends need to switch location to reach broader audience. Invasive species
management interns working on ALB surveys on private campgrounds hoping to reach twenty campgrounds. Partnership
with DOT and DEP to look at hazard trees on Route 28 and 28a and examine the risks that EAB poses to traveling
motorists. Aquatic invasive species inventory using environmental DNA techniques possibly with SUNY Oneonta on
WOH and EOH reservoirs.
Erin- Adirondack invasive species intern going to Oswego and Jefferson county fairs promoting traps. APPIP week.
Putting out traps at 45 locations throughout adirondacks.
No other updates
Invasive Species News Updates



legislation passed in NYS that will make it illegal to possess Eurasian boar as of September 2015. Illegal to import
animals this year. Punishable by fines.
EAB detected in Unadilla. First known infestation in both Delaware and Otsego counties. Seems to be a 10+year
infestation
EAB quarantine in effect as of May 2013- CRISP will be making a document explaining the quarantine to various
stakeholders
CRISP Contract Updates and discussion
1. Frost Valley Barberry DemoHeather- Working on interpretive project to eliminate Japanese barberry three separate plots using three different methods:
mechanical, herbicides, and fire. Interpretative signs showing before and after pictures and what Japanese Barberry does.
Meredith- Are there restoration plans after treatment?
Heather- FV staff will do the planting themselves.
Meredith- Will torching impact seedbanks of barberry too?
Heather- Yes, but 90% of seeds germinate.
Kerissa- How will that impact the recovery of native vegetation in the area? Is there a deer herbivory impact?
Heather- Deer haven’t affected other plantings so far.
Chris- Could be a good idea to do a deer exclosure
2. Ashokan Center Native Plant Restoration and Education InitiativeKerissa- Project outcomes good so far. Stiltgrass project going well. Community members who attended educational days
formed their own group. Signage coming soon. Ashokan center website now has educational materials relating to the
project up on the web. Pollinator gardens rain gardens doing well with all this rain. Describes fern project, states how well
aggressive native fern transplants work.
Molly- Gardening and native plants are the hook for people. Hoping to duplicate this elsewhere next year.
Chris- Suggests workshop on alternatives to invasive species. Talks about support for Invasive Species Prevention Act.
Meredith- Comments on Spring 2014 when legislation for Invasive Species Prevention Act comes into effect.
3. CRISP/SUNY Oneonta Boat Stewards Program
Molly- States that boat steward project going well, has good news: boat steward caught water chestnut before entering
Canadarago lake. Also mentions aquatic invasive species transport law being discussed for three major lakes in
Cooperstown.
4. Rondout Neversink Knotweed Control Project
Molly- Knotweed surveys complete on the Chestnut and Rondout creeks. Trainings of highway crew proceeding through summer
months. Control work to start end of summer/early fall.
Meredith- Much how knotweed are they finding?
Molly- Staff is away, uncertain.
5. CCE EDRR program
Rick- Office is having letters of agreement problems. Tells audience about websites for EDRR materials, and work on blitz
events, likely to be scheduled towards end of summer/beginning of fall. Receiving lots of phone calls concerning IS issues.
Discussion of CRISP EDRR Program
Molly- Lower Hudson PRISM is up and running, this allows CRISP to better keep tabs on EDRR species. Moves on to
describe the tangible products that CRISP provides. States that one of our tangible products is Giant Hogweed control
program which is very successful. EDRR is a CRISP priority. Can we serve as a rapid response team for early detections?
Alan- what species do we go after?
Molly/Meredith: Depends, we need a list that the general public can recognize: giant hogweed, mile-a-minute, water
milfoil, ALB….
Molly-For partners with some training, the list can be different. DEC rangers, for example
Alan- Sullivan County detections of MAM confirmed?
Molly/Meredith: No.
Donna- describes plant with big leaves; ‘pestilence wort’, a new arrival in private property riparian corridors. Appears to
be producing a monoculture in those corridors. Notes that this plant is found on Long Island and is not listed here as
invasive but is listed in Pennsylvania. What do we do about it?
Chris- Asks if they have any survey data of this infestation.
Donna-Needs stream permits and private land permission to delineate infestation. States that this could be a good test case.
Also needs partners to conduct follow up study. Needs the necessary data to use the decision tool.
Meredith-states the role of PRISMs in coordinating access to private lands.
Alan- Are there other agencies that could help out with this?
Chris: reminds everyone of CRISP engagement policies and says if CRISP doesn’t act, it’s likely no one else will.
Meredith- too much time and man power involved in rapid response for CRISP’s resources.
Donna- CRISP can be involved in the initial surveying and monitoring of the population. We need data before we can act.
Molly- this can be the subject of discussion for our next CRISP meeting