New Hampshire Lakes Association Lake HostTM Program 2013 Manual Aquatic Nuisance Species Education and Prevention Program Brought to New Hampshire’s lakes and ponds and local groups by: New Hampshire Lakes Association (NH LAKES) 14 Horseshoe Pond Lane Concord, NH 03301 p: (603) 226-0299 f: (603) 224-9442
[email protected] www.nhlakes.org May 1, 2013 Dear Lake Hosts and Point Persons, The Lake HostTM Program—New Hampshire Lakes Association’s premier Lake Hosts Needed! th education and stewardship program—officially kicks off its 12 year in mid-May with a new message to share with boaters: “Clean, Drain, and Dry!” Along with providing boaters with a new brochure and decal this year, approximately 750 Lake Hosts, staffing 102 of the most highly used public boat ramps throughout the state, will teach boaters about how they can prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance animals along with aquatic nuisance plants. During previous years, Lake Hosts have focused on teaching boaters how to prevent the spread of unwanted plants, like variable milfoil, by showing boaters where to look for hitchhiking plant fragments on boats and trailers, removing all hitchhikers, and disposing of them properly. Since 2002, Lake Hosts have conducted more than 505,000 courtesy boat inspections and have captured 1,256 pieces of hitchhiking aquatic nuisance plants before they were able to infest another waterbody! And, by simply showing boaters how to conduct their own boat and trailer inspections when a Lake Host isn’t working at Sat. Sept. 7, 2013 ramp they visit, Lake Hosts have surely contributed to the prevention of many Lake Winnipesaukee at more aquatic nuisance species fragments from sneaking into New Hampshire’s Weirs Beach, Laconia waterbodies.