City to Use 'Agent Orange of Herbicides' to Kill Quarton Lake Lily Pads

Invasive lily pads, like these, are such a problem that the city of Birmingham has asked the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for permission to use Weed-B-Gon or a similar chemical treatment to eradicate them. (Photo: wikimedia commons)

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Harvesting lily pads seemed like a good idea to Birmingham residents, but now their overgrowth is threatening to overtake Quarton Lake, the Observer & Eccentric reports.

While most residents opposed the use of chemicals to kill the lily pads, many have changed their views on the issue, officials said.

“I am hearing that as long as it is environmentally safe, our residents are now OK with it,” Birmingham Department of Public Services Director Lauren Wood said Monday.

The only way to kill the lily pads is by using Weed-B-Gon or a similar chemical treatment.

“It’s kind of the Agent Orange of herbicides, but we are paying people to eradicate the lily pads, and that’s what this will do,” said Derek J. Stratelak, senior project manager for Hubbell, Roth & Clark a engineering firm that specializes in water treatment and distribution.

Stratelak assures residents that the herbicide will not harm the fish or wildlife.

Birmingham officials voted to ask the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for a permit to use a chemical treatment to kill the lily pads. The first chemical treatment will take place this fall.

The MDEQ will determine which chemical treatment will be most effective.

The MDEQ has set a $15,000 budget for the chemical treatments, which is expected to suppress the lily population for the next five years.