Under IC 4-22-2-24, notice is hereby given that on July 23, 2007, at 10:00 a.m., at the Indiana Government Center-South, 402 West Washington Street, Room W272, Indianapolis, Indiana, the Natural Resources Commission will a hold public hearing on proposed new rule 312 IAC 18-3-21 governing the regulation of Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) as a pest or pathogen.

IC 4-22-2-24(d)(3) Justification Statement: This proposed rule provides protection against the spread of hydrilla in Indiana. Hydrilla is an invasive plant that causes ecological damage, reduces recreational opportunities, and can be expensive to eradicate. Hydrilla is a federal noxious aquatic plant. This federal classification prevents the import of hydrilla into the U.S. and its interstate movement. The federal classification does not regulate the movement of hydrilla within a state, however. Hydrilla is currently found in a single lake in Indiana, Lake Manitou. If prevention, containment, and eradication steps are not implemented in Indiana, hydrilla will quickly spread and establish throughout the state making eradication impossible. This rule is being proactive in stopping the spread of this plant at the initial stage of its invasion. This is much more cost effective than implementing eradication steps as the plant moves throughout the state. If 20% of the lakes 50 acres or larger would become infested, eradication costs would approach $50 million.

Regulated entities affected by this rule might include those in the aquatic plant trade, watercraft removal business, anglers, and recreational boaters. With hydrilla currently being a federal noxious aquatic plant, there is not much opportunity for the plant to be in trade. Internet searches for aquatic plants in trade have not revealed that this plant is being used in legal trade. However, should this rule not be adopted, someone could legally harvest hydrilla from the recently infested lake and sell it within the state of Indiana. Businesses that remove watercraft, anglers, and recreational boaters will all be affected by this rule because they will have to inspect equipment to be certain that hydrilla is not present. This will not be a large burden placed on these businesses and individuals as it only requires visual inspection and hand removal of plants requiring possibly five minutes of time. No special equipment or material is required to clean hydrilla from aquatic equipment.

Copies of these rules are now on file at the Indiana Government Center-South, 402 West Washington Street, Room W272 and Legislative Services Agency, One North Capitol, Suite 325, Indianapolis, Indiana and are open for public inspection.