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This came from Barry Cahoon this morning: (December 12, 2025
NOTE: Email addresses of others included in this conversation have been removed to protect privacy.
The messages are presented here in the order in which they were sent/received to make following the conversation easier. -Jane Brown, Joe's Pond Reflections
From: barry
cahoon <bear817@hotmail.com>
Sent: Thursday,
October 23, 2025
9:07 AM
To: Wichrowski,
Mike <Mike.Wichrowski@vermont.gov>
Subject: Joe's
Pond DF&W Boat Access & Joe's Pond Association Boat
Wash/Decontamination Station
|
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Attached is a preliminary layout of a conceptual boat wash and decontamination station on DF&W land at the Joe's Pond boat access.
The JPA Eurasian Watermilfoil Management Committee feels strongly about the importance of developing this facility both to prevent the introduction of additional aquatic invasives into Joe's Pond and to avoid shipping EWM off to contaminate other currently non-infested water bodies.
You will see from this drawing that the proposed facility will usurp no currently used area of the boat access and avoids any encroachment into the delineated wetland; only into the wetlands buffer.
The JPA is seeking DF&W approval of this proposal, as it is DF&W land, before preparation of the wetlands encroachment permit application.
After you've had a chance to take a look at the attached drawing, please give me a call so we can discuss and set up a site visit.
Thanks so much Mike.
For the Joe's Pond Association
Barry Cahoon, Water Quality Director
Eurasian Watermilfoil Management Coordinator
802-535-0049
From: Wichrowski,
Mike <Mike.Wichrowski@vermont.gov>
Sent: Friday,
October 31, 2025 4:19 PM
To: barry
cahoon <bear817@hotmail.com>
Subject: RE:
Joe's Pond DF&W Boat Access & Joe's Pond Association Boat
Wash/Decontamination Station
Barry
After discussing this proposal with ANR staff, including the F&W Commissioner, the Department’s position has not changed. We believe placing a boat wash station at this access area would not be appropriate due to its space limitations. The parking area is already very restricted and simply cannot accommodate the loss of any parking. While I appreciate the lake association’s creativity to find an alternative option, the latest proposed wash station location would still impact boaters by taking up at least 2 critically important parking spaces. Additionally, encroaching into the wetland buffer is not something the Department or DEC supports and it’s unlikely that it would be a permittable activity.
The Department supports AIS education and prevention, but it cannot come at the detriment of the public’s ability to access the public resource of Joe’s Pond. In past conversations with lake association members, I’ve encouraged them to put more effort into staffing the greeter station during the high use times (weekends, nights, holidays) to encounter the greatest number of boaters. This approach is certainly more cost effective and can reach significantly more boaters.
The Department appreciates all the efforts of the Joe’s Pond Association to educate boaters and help prevent the spread of AIS.
Mike
Mike Wichrowski (He/Him) | Lands & Facilities Administrator
Vermont Agency of Natural Resources | Department of Fish & Wildlife
Fisheries Division | Access Area Program
1 National Life Dr, Davis 2 | Montpelier, VT 05620-3901
802-917-1347 | mike.wichrowski@vermont.gov
https://vtfishandwildlife.com/
The Agency of Natural Resources supports telework, and there are times when I may be working from another office location. I am available to connect by phone and email. I am also available to connect in-person upon request.
From: barry
cahoon <bear817@hotmail.com>
Sent: Thursday,
November 6, 2025
8:20 AM
To: Wichrowski,
Mike <Mike.Wichrowski@vermont.gov>
Subject: Re:
Joe's Pond DF&W Boat Access & Joe's Pond Association Boat
Wash/Decontamination Station
11/06/25
Mike Wichrowski, Lands & Facilities Administrator
VT Department of Fish & Wildlife [DF&W]
Montpelier, VT
Dear Mike,
Thank you for your response to the Joe’s Pond Association (JPA) preliminary proposal
for a boat wash/decontamination station at the Joe’s Pond DF&W boat access
previously transmitted to you by email on 10/23/25.
As I’m sure you can imagine, the JPA is disappointed in the substance of the DF&W
evaluation and beyond that, takes express issue with the bases of your conclusions.
Equally disheartening is the seeming unwillingness of the DFW to substantively
collaborate with the JPA to significantly enhance and improve our ability to prevent the
introduction of additional aquatic invasive species (AIS) into Joe’s Pond and, perhaps
even more importantly, prevent the export of Eurasian Watermilfoil (EWM), which has
already infested Joe’s Pond, inevitably to other currently EWM-free Vermont
waterbodies.
The DFW can rationalize all it wants that merely staffing the greeter station at high-use
times is “more cost-effective”. Perhaps so, but only if you ignore the ever expanding
costs of AIS containment and management with which a lake association is saddled,
most likely in perpetuity, once introduced, and as the JPA is already experiencing.
It cannot in any way be argued convincingly that a greeter inspection program alone,
regardless of how many hours staffed, will be more functionally effective than an inspection program, at equal staffing levels, backed up and supplemented by a fully equipped boat wash and decontamination station.
For instance, spiny waterflea can easily escape visual detection as can zebra mussel
veligers, rusty crayfish eggs, and minute fragments of numerous aquatic invasive plant
species. All these AIS and others are much more likely to be removed from boats and
trailers through operation of a fully equipped decontamination program. One would
surmise that the DFW would appreciate a partnership with any lake association willing
to expend the resources to develop and operate such an ecological protection program.
JPA already fully staffs its greeter program at high use times and more and is proud to
have maintained a vigorous inspection program for many years. As evidence of the
point the JPA is making here, despite our robust efforts at boat inspection (absent a
decontamination station), EWM still found its way into the lake and has become an
enormous and potentially overwhelming problem sorely taxing the management and
containment capabilities of the association.
DFW has made the claim that an inspection program alone without decontamination
capacity is “more cost effective”. FYI, the JPA plans to provide the financial resources
for project construction and to endow an operation and maintenance fund in perpetuity
for this proposed facility. Cost-effectiveness need not be of any concern to the VT
DFW or ANR or represent any rational argument for why this proposed facility should
not be built. The JPA intends to conduct the most effective lake protection program that
we are able and take responsibility for eliminating the potential export of AIS to other
waterbodies.
Virtually every piece of information published, on-line or in print, by VT ANR relating to
control of AIS spread and proliferation, emphasizes and places highest priority on
prevention of introduction into new waterbodies. The JPA embraces this strategy and
intends to implement it to the greatest extent possible. We need the DFW to embrace
this concept as well, consistent with your mission.
10 V.S.A. Section 1453 (b)(2) states that the Agency of Natural Resources “shall work
with….local interest organizations….to develop long range programs regarding aquatic
nuisance controls.” The JPA constitutes a local interest organization and is certainly
proposing here a long range program. The DFW response to the JPA proposal
appears to be inconsistent with this statutory mandate.
The issue DFW has raised of whether the JPA proposal constitutes a permittable
activity is a question completely separate from the proposal submitted to DFW. As an
initial step to this project development process, the JPA has asked whether the DFW,
as the landowner and property manager, will allow the JPA to install, operate, and
maintain a boat wash and decontamination station for the purpose of preventing AIS
introduction into Joe’s Pond and export of AIS to other waterbodies. The question of
whether the JPA proposal is a permittable activity under the VT Wetland Rules is
appropriately addressed at a later step of this project development process.
It does not seem appropriate to the JPA that the DFW speculate, at this stage of the
process, that “it’s unlikely that it (the JPA proposal) would be a permittable activity” by
VT DEC under the VT Wetland Rules.
VT Lake Associations, including the JPA, bear disproportionately the burden of AIS
spread prevention and ultimately of AIS management once introduced into the
waterbody. VT Lake Associations and their members also suffer disproportionately the
social, financial and ecological costs of AIS proliferation. As the JPA works to discharge
our responsibilities to our membership, to Joe’s Pond, and all other VT waterbodies
(and beyond) to implement a complete AIS spread prevention and containment
program, we can much more effectively accomplish our purpose when the ANR is acting
as a collaborative and supportive partner.
The JPA can appreciate the value of public access to Joe’s Pond and recognizes the
constraints of limited space. We acknowledge the JPA proposal would result in the loss
of two parking spaces in order to facilitate access and egress to the proposed boat
wash/decontamination station. But we should honestly assess our collective and
shared purposes and priorities.
Introduction of AIS into VT waterbodies presents significant potential to dramatically
degrade water quality, aquatic habitats, native plant and animal species, and the
functions and values of all wetlands adjoining the waterbody. Why wouldn’t the ANR,
through the actions and decisions of the DFW and DEC, support a lake association
that is doing everything within its capabilities and resources to prevent AIS introduction
and export?
We need to examine the big picture. Just how often is the Joe’s Pond boat launch area
so plugged up with vehicles that these two spaces are critical? While this data
obviously does not exist, anecdotally, it can be accurately and confidently stated that
this area of the boat launch is used for parking extremely infrequently. And in
consideration of the almost negligibly limited extent to which it appears vessel access to
Joe’s Pond would be affected through implementation of the JPA proposal, how could
this possibly outweigh and become a higher priority than accomplishing a significant
reduction in the likelihood of AIS introduction and export?
If preservation of the functions and values of existing Joe’s Pond-associated wetlands
from the negative impacts of AIS introduction means so little to the DFW that it would
assign greater value to two parking spaces, then maybe the DFW should consider
agreeing that the JPA fill additional area of the wetland buffer (if permitted under the VT
Wetland Rules) to create two new offsetting parking spaces? This is a potential project
extension that the JPA is willing to undertake if it should constitute acceptable mitigation
for the lost parking spaces.
What is the ANR priority here? Preserve parking area and prohibit a small
encroachment into a wetland buffer thereby increasing the likelihood of AIS introduction,
and degradation of the social, economic and natural resource values of Joe’s Pond and
its associated wetlands? Or will the ANR priority be to form a functional and mutually
beneficial relationship with the JPA to mitigate any limited disruption of vessel access
and reduce the likelihood of AIS proliferation and its associated widespread ecological
loss?
The JPA respectfully requests that the VT DFW reevaluate its stated position on the
JPA proposal.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
For the Joe’s Pond Association
Albert Hebert, President
Barry Cahoon, Water Quality Director
Eurasian Watermilfoil Management Coordinator
cc: DFW Commissioner Jason Batchelder
ANR Secretary Julie Moore
Senator Scott Beck
From: Wichrowski,
Mike <Mike.Wichrowski@vermont.gov>
Sent: Tuesday,
December 9, 2025
3:54 PM
To: barry
cahoon
Subject: RE: Joe's Pond DF&W Boat Access & Joe's Pond Association Boat Wash/Decontamination Station
Barry
After discussing your request in more detail with Commissioner Batchelder, the Department has not changed its position. Additionally, it was confirmed with Commissioner Sinsigalli that the wetlands program would not permit your proposed encroachment into the wetland buffer.
Neither the loss of parking for public access, nor encroaching on a wetland, are not something the Agency is willing to support. Further, converting this parking to an alternative use could jeopardize our federal funding which is critical to supporting our access program and all federally funded fisheries grants.
The Department values the public’s right to access public waters as well as protecting them from AIS. We are willing to work with the JPA on a proposal that works for everyone. Unfortunately, at this point we do not feel this proposal meets that threshold.
Mike
Mike Wichrowski (He/Him) | Lands & Facilities Administrator
Vermont Agency of Natural Resources | Department of Fish & Wildlife
Fisheries Division | Access Area Program
1 National Life Dr, Davis 2 | Montpelier, VT 05620-3901
802-917-1347 | mike.wichrowski@vermont.gov
https://vtfishandwildlife.com/
The Agency of Natural Resources supports telework, and there are times when I may be working from another office location. I am available to connect by phone and email. I am also available to connect in-person upon request.
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