There’s an aquatic plant that causes trouble in Lake Tapps. Here’s the plan to fight it
Say goodbye to those pesky plants in Lake Tapps.
The Cascade Water Alliance announced in a news release Friday its plan to begin treating milfoil on some parts of the Lake Tapps Reservoir in the next two weeks. There are six treatment areas, from the northwest part of the lake to the southeast.
Milfoil is a submersed aquatic plant with feather-like leaves attached to a main stem. It is native to Europe, Asia and northern Africa. It can quickly grow and spread. It can interfere with recreational activities and block sunlight from other underwater species.
The aquatic plant lives in most Northwest lakes. It has been in Lake Tapps on and off for years, according to the news release.
The CWA will notify residents who live near the six areas about the time and date of the treatments. The agency will use ProcellaCOR, an aquatic herbicide approved by the state Department of Ecology.
The CWA owns and operates the reservoir, but it doesn’t have enough funds to treat all impacted areas. Homeowners with small patches of milfoil can work directly with Aquatechnex, an aquatic plant management firm, through CWA’s pilot project at cascadewater.org/lake-tapps/milfoil/.
The CWA is not legally obligated to deal with the milfoil as it’s no longer classified as a noxious weed. However, the agency still chooses to treat it on a regular basis.
“Cascade is as interested as residents and recreation enthusiasts in keeping the reservoir clean and safe,” the agency wrote in the news release.
Property owners who want to remove aquatic plants from the reservoir must follow rules outlined by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife at wdfw.wa.gov/licenses/environmental/hpa/types/aquatic-plants.
