Watershed Management Bureau

  Exotic Species Program

    Variable Milfoil Research Projects

In the fall of 2004, New Hampshire was the recipient of close to $1 Million of federal appropriations. Approximately $500,000 was allocated from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and another $500,000 was allocated from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The purpose of these funds was to promote research projects on variable milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum) to determine the types of habitats this exotic aquatic plant invades, as well as mechanisms for longer-term control and possible eradication of the milfoil.

In the spring of 2005, the Department of Environmental Services entered into grant agreements with 5 different research entities, for a total of 6 research projects.

The projects were completed in fall of 2007.  Following is a list of the projects that were funded, as well as links to the final project reports.

Variable Milfoil Plant Replacement Project – Please note that there are three manuscripts that are pending publication, so a final report will not be available at this time. Once the manuscripts are published, DES will link to those articles. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Dr. Ken Wagner, ENSR Corporation and Wendy Corbin, ENSR Corporation

Variable Milfoil and Sediment, Water Quality and Watershed Relationships
Wendy Corbin, ENSR Corporation and Dr. Ken Wagner, ENSR Corporation

Using Dispersal and Environmental Variables to Predict Milfoil Occurrence and Susceptibility to Invasion by Non-Native Milfoil in New Hampshire Lakes
Dr. Ryan Thum, Cornell University and Dr. Jay Lennon, Brown University

An Exploration of the Use of Parasitic Nematodes for the Biological Control of Variable Leafed Milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum)
Mr. Jeff Schloss, Dr. Garrett Crow, University of New Hampshire, Dr Eyualem Abebe, and Dr William, K. Thomas

Integration of Hydroacoustic and Water-Quality Assessments for Identifying Susceptible Areas for Variable Milfoil Establishment in a New Hampshire Lake
Jeff Deacon, Richard Kiah, and Jane Denny, U.S. Geological Survey

Evaluation of Seven Aquatic Herbicides for Selective Control of Variable Milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum Michx)
Dr. Kurt Getsinger and Dr. Mike Netherland, US ACOE