Middlefield Receives $29K From State For Aquatic Invasive Species

MIDDLEFIELD, CT -The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has announced the recipients of $370,000 in funding from the Aquatic Invasive Species Grant Program going to 15 projects to reduce impacts of aquatic invasive species on inland waters in Connecticut. One of those is for Beseck Lake in Middlefield.

Middlefield will receive $29,400 for control/management of Myriophylum Spicatum.

The Aquatic Invasive Species Grant Program was made possible in 2019 when the Connecticut General Assembly established an Aquatic Invasive Species Stamp fee applied to all registered boats using Connecticut waters, to provide a dedicated funding source for the “Connecticut Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation Account," according to a statement.

This account funds programs to protect the state’s lakes, ponds and rivers by addressing aquatic invasive species and cyanobacteria blooms.

Aquatic invasive species, such as Zebra mussels and Hydrilla are a serious threat to our ecosystems. They negatively impact native plants and animals, they are extremely costly to control, and the dense mats formed by invasive plants make boating, fishing, and swimming difficult.

This has a direct impact on both the quality of outdoor recreation in Connecticut, and the state’s outdoor recreation economy, of which boating and fishing are the largest contributors.