FWC’s aquatic plant management program mission is to reduce negative impacts from invasive plants such as water hyacinth, water lettuce and hydrilla to conserve the multiple uses and functions of public lakes and rivers. Invasive plants infest 96% of Florida’s 466 public waters inventoried in 2011 which comprise 1.26 million acres of fresh water. Once established, invasive plants are difficult or impossible to eradicate and very expensive to manage; therefore, continuous maintenance is critical to keep them at low levels to sustain amenities such as navigation, flood control and recreation while conserving native plant habitat for fish and wildlife. A summary of plants controlled in sovereignty public waters and associated expenditures contracted or monitored by the FWC during Fiscal Year 2010-2011 is presented in the Annual Report of Activities Conducted under the Cooperative Aquatic Plant Control Program in Florida Public Waters for Fiscal Year 2010-2011.
Last updated: 08 May 2013