Gallatin County Weed Board
Regular Monthly Meeting
July 05, 2007
Board members present were Jeff Littlefield (Chair), Bob Hofman, Fred Bell and Linda Vrooman. Commissioner Joe Skinner was excused.
Others present were Sam Rogers, Keith Mainwaring, Dennis Hengel (Coordinator), John Ansley (Education/Enforcement Coordinator), and Rosemary Perry (Secretary).
Minutes. Linda Vrooman had a correction for the June Minutes. In the Coordinator Report, item (d.) the Board had voted to spend $3000 on a sprayer not $5000. The Minutes were approved with the stated correction.
Claims. The Board reviewed Claims. The Claims were approved as presented.
OLD BUSINESS
1. Bylaw Changes. The Board decided to vote on the Bylaws. Jeff Littlefield had discovered a typo in Article 4, Section 2. The office staff will correct the typo. Fred Bell moved to approve the Bylaw changes, Bob Hofman seconded and the motion carried. The Bylaws will now be submitted to the Commission for approval.
2. Subdivision Requirements/Enforcement. Hengel reported that he had met with Greg Sullivan (County Planner) but Sullivan has not had a chance to follow through with the proposed WMP revisions.
Enforcement. John Ansley gave a report to the Board regarding the complaints that are coming in. The volume is up considerably since the weeds have started blooming. There was discussion among those present regarding various “hot spots” around the County. Maxey Partners, Ltd. property from Durston along the undeveloped 8th Street right-of-way is a big problem. They have not responded to any correspondence sent to them. The Weed District has gone through the enforcement process (Inspection Notice, Voluntary Compliance, Noncompliance). At this time no response has been received from Maxey Partnership to any of the letters. The Weed District will initiate on the ground treatment of the property. Bob Hofman brought up that the property behind the Country Kitchen has an
infestation of spotted knapweed (SK). There was agreement that a lot of the properties in this area are heavily infested with SK. Fred Bell said that he knows several of the landowners in the area. Ansley will review the area and contact Fred Bell regarding landowner issues. Ansley noted that he had done an inspection in the Big Sky area and the property owner had brought to his attention that SK is also in the MDT right-of-way. Hengel is planning to meet with Councilman (USFS) and MDT on Monday to discuss boundary locations and schedule coordinator work efforts in the Gallatin Canyon and Big Sky area. Littlefield asked a question regarding the comment in the Monthly report regarding the Tall buttercup infestations along Baxter Lane. Ansley told him that the infestations were large and it appears that Tall buttercup is widely established in the valley.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Public Comment/Other. Keith Mainwaring informed the Board that the Commissioners have purchased a new information rack and when it is set up he would be available to pick up brochures from the office to display at the Courthouse.
2. Request for new noxious weed listing in Gallatin County. The Weed District has received a letter requesting that Scotch thistle be added to the county noxious weed list. There is a large infestation in the Churchill area that local residents have been trying to control. Hengel felt that Field scabious should also be added to the county list, as it is abundant in the Jackson Creek – Trail Creek areas. Jeff Littlefield would like to see a list of the county declared noxious weeds in our neighboring counties. Fred Bell moved to start the process to add both weeds to the Gallatin County list with the option to review other potential additions. Linda Vrooman seconded and the motion carried.
3. Commissioner Report. Commissioner Skinner was excused.
4. Chairperson Report. Jeff Littlefield did not have anything new.
5. Coordinator Report.
v County Scoop: Hengel reported that he has written two (2) articles for the County Newsletter, one on spotted knapweed in May and one on yellow starthistle for the June issue. Copies of the June issue were passed out to those present.
v Big Sky Sprayer: There is still an issue regarding having commercial applicators available for this project. Keith Blewett has been doing a lot of organizing in the Big Sky area. As in the last two years, it has been difficult to locate a commercial applicator for the area. An idea was discussed of having the Weed District conduct spraying at Big Sky next year, as a staff member would be the organizer. The current commercial rates would be charged. Fred Bell felt that documentation would be a key issue and property owners would have to document that they had not been able to get a commercial applicator before the Weed District could be hired to conduct on the ground
treatment.
v Upper Madison Weed Management Area: Hengel stated that the Weed District has conducted the ground work in creating an Upper Madison/West Yellowstone WMA. The Weed District has a good map of known infestations and has an extensive landowner contact list for participants. The Weed District is ready to apply for a NWTF grant this winter to provide assistance to landowners. Earlier in the month Hengel met with Ron Carlstrom (Extension Agent), Joe Skinner (Commissioner) and Earl Mathers (County Administrator) and showed them the work that has been done to date and filled them in on meetings that have been held in West Yellowstone in response to a request by Pat Povah
about establishing a WMA. In addition, this year the Weed District advertised for a coordinator for the West Yellowstone area (West Yellowstone News) but did not receive any applications. The most successful management of a WMA involves having a dedicated coordinator (as in the Big Sky WMA). However, a qualified individual for the coordinator position has proven difficult to locate in West Yellowstone. Regardless, due to the critical need a NWTF grant will be submitted this winter.
v Hengel informed the Board that County Commissioners approved for FY 2008 the $6,200 Special County Dept of Ag Grant.
v Hengel attended a recent Conservation District meeting. The Conservation District has contracted with Jennifer Mohler to help with small acreage inspections. The Conservation District Board approved a coordinated effort with the Weed District to assist landowners in the Hebgen Lake/West Yellowstone area.
Linda Vrooman officially resigned from her position on the Board as of this meeting as she is planning to move to Colorado and will be unable to fulfill her Board position. All the Board members expressed appreciation for her hard work over the past several years.
The meeting adjourned at 2.47PM. The next meeting will be on 08/02/07.
Respectfully submitted,
Approved Jeffrey Littlefield, Chairman
Rosemary Perry, Secretary
Approved Dennis Hengel, Coordinator
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