The Upper Saranac Foundation (USF) is pleased to demonstrate another successful year of AIS management at Fish Creek Campground and upstream into the campground’s tributary. The 2023 Fish Creek Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Management Project Report, now available to the public, summarizes the data and program highlights for the Fish Creek AIS Management Project (FCAISMP) since its inception in 2016.
Removal and control of AIS in the Upper Saranac Lake watershed at Fish Creek protects the downstream waters of Upper Saranac Lake from infestation and helps prevent the export of AIS to non-infested waters. The program protects economic value through recreation, tourism, sportsmanship, and second home ownership by providing clear, weed-free waterways.
In past years, USF contracted independent companies for this AIS management service. Beginning in 2022, USF took over AIS operations by employing and supervising our own divers. The shift in administration reduced the expense to USF while providing a direct management approach that further increased efficiency.
The report includes project activities that can be summarized in the following key points:
- In 2016, the USF developed a plan to manage AIS in Fish Creek Campground and seek funding to cover the estimated cost of the project. The goal was to restore the 108 acres of littoral campground waterfront and, in addition, prevent AIS from infesting downstream and regional waters.
- To implement the Fish Creek AIS Management Project, a fundraising campaign initiated by USF raised over $60,000 in donations. Additional funding was awarded to USF in the amount of $100,000 from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Invasive Species Rapid Response and Control Grant and later an additional $20,000 from Parks & Trails NY.
- Three years of initial intensive management in the campground (Upper Fish Creek Pond and Square Pond) concluded in 2019; 2024 was the fourth year of the maintenance phase of the FCAISMP funded entirely by USF.
- A total of $10,250 was invested into 205 diver work hours within the campground ponds (Upper Fish Creek Pond and Square Pond) in 2023. The divers harvested 709 pounds of milfoil.
- Adirondack Watershed Institute (AWI) Watershed Stewards stationed at the campground boat launch inspecting boats being retrieved have found significantly less AIS. Over a seven-year period, there has been a 94% reduction in AIS on watercraft being retrieved from the launch. Only two boats being removed at the campground launch were found to be carrying AIS in 2023.
- In 2019, AIS containment booms were placed just upstream of the Fish Creek Campground boat launch to prevent fragmented invasive plants from floating downstream and being introduced into managed areas within the campground and further downstream into Upper Saranac Lake. Since the booms were installed an estimated average of 3,000 pounds of milfoil has been removed annually.
- Since the inception of this project, 49,862 pounds of milfoil have been removed from the campground ponds (Upper Fish Creek and Square Ponds), another 15,525 pounds has been removed from its tributary in the creek, and approximately 15,000 pounds of AIS has been removed from the containment booms. In total approximately 66,887 pounds — over 33 tons — of AIS have been removed from the campground and its tributary.
AIS removal in Fish Creek Pond is consistent with the USF Watershed Management Plan and supports clean water for recreation, sustains diverse ecosystems, and protects tourism and the economic value it brings. The FCAISMP is part of a larger watershed protection program, developed by USF, that uses a combination of AIS prevention, monitoring, management, control activities, and education to inhibit AIS spread.
To view the 2023 Fish Creek AIS Management Project complete report, click here.