Upcoming Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force meeting features state management planning in the Great Lakes

Next week, May 8-11, the federal Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force and the Great Lakes Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species will be holding their spring meetings at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center in Erie, Pennsylvania. This joint meeting will feature an all-day session on Aquatic Nuisance Species State Management Plans: Great Lakes Regional Perspectives, to be moderated by the Great Lakes Commission. The session will be based on outcomes of the 2-year project A Collaborative Approach to Advance Implementation of State Management Plans for Prevention and Control of Aquatic Nuisance Species in the Great Lakes Region, funded by the National Sea Grant Program.

This project has given the Great Lakes Commission the opportunity to work in collaboration with the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network and state Natural Resource agencies to conduct state-specific workshops to advance state management plan development and implementation in the Great Lakes region. The objectives of the workshops, depending on status of state management planning in the state, have helped to identify strengths, successes, gaps and unmet needs. Workshops have been completed in Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Outcomes from all state-specific workshops and the progress of state management planning in the Great Lakes region will be presented May 9, as part of the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force meeting at the same location. This session will provide a forum for Great Lakes states to share ideas and lessons learned from each of the workshops. In addition, it will provide an opportunity to develop recommendations for improving and advancing state management plans at a regional and federal level.

For more information, contact Kathe Glassner-Shwayder (shwayder@glc.org) or Erika Jensen (ejensen@glc.org) at the Great Lakes Commission, or visit the project website at: www.glc.org/ans/initiatives.html#advance, the Great Lakes Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species meeting website at: www.glc.org/ans/panel.html#glpmeet, or the ANS Task Force meeting website at: www.anstaskforce.gov/meeting_5_2007.php.

If interested in attending, please refer to the Great Lakes Panel’s website (www.glc.org/ans/panel.html#glpmeet) for registration information.

The Great Lakes Commission, chaired by Lt. Gov. John Cherry (Mich.), is an interstate compact agency established under state and U.S. federal law and dedicated to promoting a strong economy, healthy environment and high quality of life for the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region and its residents. The Commission consists of governors' appointees, state legislators, and agency officials from its eight member states. Associate membership for Ontario and Québec was established through the signing of a "Declaration of Partnership." The Commission maintains a formal Observer program involving U.S. and Canadian federal agencies, tribal authorities, binational agencies and other regional interests. The Commission offices are located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.