Green Bay is 'ground zero' for invasive reeds

GREEN BAY - Nearly 800 acres of shoreline, public park land and private property in the area has been overrun by an invasive, giant grass reed known for destroying native ecosystems and fueling wildfires.

Local and state natural resources specialists are fighting back — with chemical warfare.

The second phase of a $1 million chemical spraying project to control the reeds, called phragmites, will kick off in late August. The work includes spraying from an amphibious vehicle that can drive on land or float on water to reach offshore plants. Once the reeds are dead, crews will return to mow them down.

Spraying will occur from Howard to Scott and south through De Pere. Most of the work will occur in Green Bay, which has one of most dense concentrations of phragmites in all of Wisconsin.

"In Brown County, we're kind of ground zero for phragmites," said Angela Kowalzek-Adrians, natural resources planner with Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission.

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Bay-Lake is coordinating the project. The funding comes from the federal Environmental Protection Agency through the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act.

The name phragmites is derived from the Greek word meaning "fence." It's a highly invasive wetland grass that can grow 8 to 20 feet tall. The species growing in Green Bay is not native to the area and was probably introduced to North America in the early 1800s. It chokes out other types of plants, overtakes trails and boating docks, blocks views of the shoreline and creates a fire hazard.

In April 2015, phragmites provided fuel for a large grass fire that burned about 30 acres in and around the Ken Euers Nature Area.

"It creates a true living wall within our wetlands. It grows so densely that no other plants can compete with it. It creates these giant monocultures of just this one plant and no room for other species. It will drive out our wildlife, our water fowl, and it becomes unusable for other species," said Jason Granberg, water resources management specialist for the state Department of Natural Resources.

Phragmites are mostly located in the eastern third of Wisconsin, but it's creeping westward. The Green Bay plants are a major source of new infestations — waves can break off and carry away rhyzomes — making control efforts here key to stopping the plant from spreading, Granberg said.

Several groups are attacking phragmites on a smaller scale across the state. The second largest effort is part of the state's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and includes spraying 493 acres of the plant in 21 counties.

Last year, Bay-Lake treated a seven-acre test site along the shoreline around Bay Beach Amusement Park. The treatment worked better than expected, but it won't fully eradicate the plant, Kowalzek-Adrians said. A long-term management plan will need to be created. That plan would likely include a combination of spot treatments with chemicals, regular mowing and replanting native plants.

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"There are some areas so dense it's almost an insurmountable task. We’re taking an unmanageable task and making it manageable for property owners and municipalities," Kowalzek-Adrians said.

The effort has support from local governments and property owners. The City of Green Bay earlier this month authorized Bay-Lake to do chemical spraying in public parks and right-of-ways.

Wisconsin Public Service, which owns about 100 acres of land overtaken by phragmites, is also working with Bay-Lake on a long-term management plan that would include restoring native habitats on that property once the invasive plant is gone.

"It's an issue that not only management but employees are concerned about," WPS spokesman Kerry Spees said. "We know the project will take some time. It will be a couple years to treat the phragmites and get them out of there and several more years to replant with natural vegetation."

arodewal@pressgazettemedia.com and follow him on Twitter @AdamGRodewald and on Facebook at Facebook.com/AdamGRodewald.

Phragmites treatment sites

Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission is coordinating the chemical treatment of 780 acres of phragmites, an invasive grass reed, in the greater Green Bay-area. Here’s a breakdown of where the herbicide will be applied.

Green Bay: 450 acres

Right of ways (highway, railroad, power lines, etc.): 167 acres

Howard: 64 acres

Bellevue: 33 acres

Ashwaubenon: 29 acres

Scott: 20 acres

Allouez: 14 acres

De Pere: 3 acres