Spartina Anglica
Spartina anglica was initially discovered on Roberts Bank in the Fraser Delta by Gary Williams during intertidal marsh surveys conducted for the Vancouver Port Authority in the summer of 2003. Upon discovery and notification to several agencies, the Vancouver Port Authority initiated a response for Spartina removal. Following the initial response, a committee consisting of government and non-government agencies was assembled to develop a plan to identify, monitor, remove and conduct outreach of Spartina in the Fraser River Delta.
In 2004, over $118,000 dollars was spent on direct and in-kind costs for Spartina control. Using both ground and a hovercraft method, Spartina was estimated to affect over 220 ha of the 25,000 ha of intertidal habitat in the Fraser River Delta. An initial Spartina assessment was carried out in May and June to identify areas to begin Spartina removal.
Throughout the summer and fall, additional surveys were completed in order to assess the locations of Spartina and direct removal crews. No Spartina was found in Burrard Inlet, Sturgeon Banks nor south of the Fraser River Delta in Point Roberts. A final fall assessment using a hovercraft identified a few Spartina clones as well as individual plants that were not removed during several Spartina removal events. The majority of Spartina infestations were individual plants and clones less than 1m in diameter and only one area was substantial in size (25m by 25m).
Only manual and mechanical Spartina removal methods were used in 2004, consisting of manually pulling and use of an excavator. Over 10 separate removal events were conducted in 2004 in Boundary Bay and Roberts Bank. The main manual removal event occurred between June 17 - 19th when approximately 88 person days were used to remove approximately 7,150 kg of Spartina and mud which were subsequently incinerated. Delta staff were actively involved in this removal by contributing equipment and labour to the removal effort.
An excavator was used to bury Spartina clones greater than 1m in diameter at a depth between 3m and 5m below the ground. It is estimated five times the amount that was manually pulled (7,150 kg) was buried using the excavator. Overall, the combination of excavator and manual methods proved to be a cost efficient and effective methodology in the Fraser River Delta.
For more information on the 2004 removal efforts see the report prepared by Ducks Unlimited - { pdf 633KB }.
In 2005, the removal efforts were from July 19 - 22 in Boundary Bay. The same methods were followed as in 2004, with a multi-agency group and volunteers conducting the work. The repeated efforts are ensuring the control of this invasive plant and monitoring is showing a significant reduction in the amount of plant material over the two years of removal effort. It is expected that the plant can completely be eradicated from Boundary Bay and Roberts Bank in the near future.
Some documents on this page are available in Adobe Acrobat Reader® PDF format. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader® you may download it for free by clicking on the link to the right. [ back to top ]