By Meg Peters
Review Co-Editor
Orion Township trustees unanimously approved an ordinance to mandate the control of invasive phragmites’on all affected township properties.
The Orion Phragmites Ordinance was unanimously approved Monday, August 3, and will go into effect’January 1, 2016.
Under the ordinance, all property owners regardless of zoning will be notified if their property contains an infestation of the invasive phragmites species.
An infestation is described as one or more seed heads in a phragmites plant.
‘If you have one right now, you will have ten by the end of the month,? Operations Director Jeff Stout said. ‘They’re land thieves, they just take your land away, and I want to give it back.?
Stout is in charge of the Orion Township invasive species program and organizing all treatment plans for township wide infestations. He encourages all residents with questions to contact him at 248-391-0304.
Ultimate authorization will be given to the township board who will decide whether to send a public notice alerting property owners to an infestation.
Each property owner will be offered the opportunity to voluntarily contract with the township to utilize the township-wide permit from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ). The MDEQ requires a permit to treat phragmites with herbicides if the phragmites growth qualifies under certain situations, for example if the invasive species is growing in standing water at the time of treatment.
For chemical treatment information and permit requirements, visit their website atmichigan.gov/deqinlandlakes’and choose Aquatic Nuisance Control. ?
If the property owner voluntarily contracts with the township for phragmite removal, the property owner will pay for the removal, which Stout assessed to be about $200 per acre.
The voluntary ad hoc committee will review township property on an annual basis, or more if directed by the township board, to determine which properties are affected by phragmites.
A homeowner may also opt to treat a phragmites infestation on their property without contracting with the township. In this case, a homeowner would have to acquire their own permit from the MDEQ, purchase the treatment product, and perform the treatment.
Township Attorney Dan Kelly said this process could be more expensive than through contracting with the township.
If a property owner refuses to voluntarily participate, they could be legally mandated to treat a phragmites infestation at the property owner’s expense under Article 6 of the ordinance. If the property owner refuses to participate, he/she would be billed for the treatment after the township treats the infestation for them. ?
‘If you have a building has a detention pond, so all the water from your parking lot is supposed to go into this little pond, and because you’ve allowed phragmites to clot the inlets and outlets, and all the stormwater is running into Clarkston Rd., that is when I would come up and say ‘hey, this has to be done right now, on your own, and if you don’t I’m going to do it for you,?? Stout said. ‘It’s about the education, we really want to work with people.?
Trustees discussed the implications of Article 6 at the first reading of the ordinance on July 6.
Article 6 can categorize a phragmites infestation as a hazardous condition, therefore mandating its treatment.
The township board will approve any properties that qualify under Article 6, at the recommendation of Stout, and will send residents a public notice alerting them to the mandate.
The notice will direct property owners to attend a public hearing in which they can refute the treatment mandate, answering the ‘why am I getting this notice? inquiry.
If an infestation qualifies as a hazardous case it: has the potential to create a hazardous fire condition; if unchecked, would inhibit sight visibility of roads, driveways, intersections and/or safety paths; or creates the potential for negative ecological impacts, loss of habitat, impaired water quality, or disruption to storm water management drainage systems. ??
The notice will be sent in no less than 15 days prior to the public hearing, according to the ordinance, and will also describe treatment options. Trustees will have the final say in whether treatment must be mandated.
The treatment would include a chemical spray treatment in the fall, and possible cutting in the winter months, Stout said, which creates an easier line of sight for the next application.
All chemicals and treatment processes are approved under the MDEQ. A certified supplier authorized under the MDEQ permit performs the spraying. Trademark chemicals used through the township permit will include Accord, Habitat, and Glyphosate.