Latest news with #invasiveweeds
CBC
4 days ago
- Automotive
- CBC
CBC Calgary Headline News August 12: Cannabis hiring changes, invasive weeds & Banff car-sharing
CBC Calgary Headline News August 12: Cannabis hiring changes, invasive weeds & Banff car-sharing 58 minutes ago Duration 0:59
CTV News
24-07-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Low water level creating concern for Whiteshell lake
Cottagers at Betula Lake are worried about the lower water levels in the area. CTV's Daniel Halmarson reports. For many cottagers, Betula Lake has become a second home. 'It's a beautiful lake. it's not huge, but it's been great,' said cottager Larry Larke. However, low water levels are causing some problems. 'When you think of a shallow lake like Betula that averages six to eight feet, when you have a four- or five-inch drop in water, it's a significant hit,' said Ryan Galloway, president of the Betula Lake Association. invasive weeds are also running wild, wreaking havoc on boaters and swimmers. 'The biggest thing is the long-term viability and the health of the lake,' Galloway said. 'The last thing we want to see is an environmental issue where the lake just becomes so overrun that we can't deal with it.' Betula lake has a target water level dictated by the province. However, Galloway said, two fixed weirs downstream can't maintain that level. 'The height of the weir needs to change,' Galloway said. 'We need to be able to contain more water for a longer period of time, so in the low seasons we're able to do to maintain that level higher.' The Betula Lake Association has already petitioned the province to take action to protect the body of water. 'They came back early January and said, 'We'll have a little water hydrological study done by the summer' and we haven't heard anything yet. We haven't got any response,' Galloway said. The cottagers said they've taken steps to educate themselves on water stewardship, but they're demanding more help to preserve Betula Lake's future. 'It's really concerning to me,' said cottager Christine DeGraff. 'My kids are fourth generation family out here. And, you know, our goal and our dream is to see generation number five enjoying it as much as we did.' Aside from raising the height of the weirs, the association wants the province to increase the target water levels and complete a study on invasive species. In an email response to questions, Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure said it must first analyze how any changes in the outlet could impact lake levels, the shoreline, and nearby properties. It says that work is now underway after being delayed by wildfires.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Mesa man awarded for helping maintain Tonto National Forest from his backyard
The Brief Mesa man Don Pike won an award for Weed Manager of the Year for his work in the Tonto National Forest. Almost every morning, Pike sneaks out of his backyard fence to pull invasive weeds like buffel, fountain grass and stinknet. He has been pulling weed for nearly 12 years. MESA, Ariz. - If you ever pull weeds in your yard, you know what a pain it is. Now imagine pulling weeds in the Tonto National Forest. That's the task a Mesa man is taking on, and he's making some pretty good progress in a unique spot in the East Valley, where Mesa meets the Tonto National Forest. Roughly 3,000,000 acres of federally protected land, slowly but surely, is being eaten alive by invasive plants. So how do you tackle such a big problem? One weed at a time. Dig deeper Almost every morning, Don Pike slips through a barbwire fence from his backyard into the Tonto National Forest. He's not here to hike, he's here to hunt. Don is searching for dozens of invasive weeds like buffel, fountain grass and the new one: stinknet, which can wipe out native plants and raise the fire risk. That's why you won't find any near his home and the 14,000 acres where the neighborhood meets nature. What they're saying After a half-mile hike, Don spots a patch of bad weeds growing along a wash. "When I'm by myself I just walk. I'm walking, and I walk off trail. So if I see one or if it's a big patch like this I will put it on the map," he said. The plants are mostly dried out but still able to spread by the roots or by the seeds. "Well, you have to keep coming back. You can't just remove it and then leave it," he said. Local perspective Don maps his progress and highlights areas he still has to hit, either pulling the weeds by hand, digging them out with a shovel or using herbicides. He knows all too well there's only so much one man can do. He says while he can clear spots, there's no way to clear the whole forest, but he keeps at it every morning, weed by weed. Why? Because he believes someone should. Why you should care He has been pulling weeds out here for 12 years with the help of other volunteers and last year won a unique award for his efforts: Arizona's Weed Manager of the Year. You could almost call it a labor of love. "I put a lot of work into it and a lot of rewards for the show. I'm happy to get the recognition, but it's just what I love to do," said Pike.
