Join Over 500 Other Friends of Lake Champlain
Please Sign The Petition to Close the Champlain Canal!
Spiny Water flea
The Champlain Canal is a 60-mile long canal that connects Lake Champlain with the Hudson river. At its peak, it was used by thousands of people to transport goods and for transportation. Today the canal is used mostly by recreational boaters and some commercial vessels.Approximately 20 invasive species have already been introduced to Lake Champlain through the canal, and the spiny water flea threatens to be the next invasive species that invades Lake Champlain. Like other lakes in the U.S., the Lake Champlain ecosystem, including fish and wildlife, and the surrounding economy will be significantly compromised with the invasion of the spiny water flea. It is estimated that the total annual cost of invasive species linked to the canal is nearly $500 million (Pimentel, 2005; http://bit.ly/Ozpywt), clearly illustrating the economic importance of disconnecting the canal from Lake Champlain. With 5,000 pleasure boats using the canal each year (Dan Weiller, spokesman for the NY State Canal Corp), it costs $100,000 of public funds per boat to keep the canal open.Numerous options exist to close the canal while accommodating boat traffic. Funding has already been set aside to cover the costs of closing the canal.
Please sign and share this petition to protect Lake Champlain and the regional economy from destructive invasive species.
You can learn more about the effort to disconnect the canal here: http://bit.ly/ChampCanal
You can also read “Feasibility of Champlain Canal Aquatic Nuisance Species Barrier Options” for suggested solutions on how to close the canal:http://www.uvm.edu:8889/~seagrant/communications/assets/ansbarrierrprt06.pdf
The post Have You Signed the Petition to Close The Champlain Canal Yet? appeared first on Lake Champlain Life.
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