Explore the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ innovative approaches to biosecurity in this insightful webinar. Topics include the implementation of watercraft inspection stations, the use of alligator weed flea beetles for biocontrol, strategies for invasive carp protection, and biocontrol measures to enhance border protection. Join us to learn how these efforts are safeguarding ecosystems and supporting national biosecurity goals.

Presentations and Speakers: 

• USACE’s Invasive Species Leadership – What’s It All About – Brianna Treichler
• Biological Control within USACE: Short- and Long-term Environmental and Economic Benefits – Nathan Harms
• Connecticut River Hydrilla Control Technology – Ben Sperry
  Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) is a highly aggressive aquatic invasive plant that has invaded every region of the US. This plant forms dense stands that impede navigation and recreation, alter water flow posing flood risk, out-competes native plants, alter water chemistry, and degrades aquatic ecosystems. Additionally, three distinct hydrilla genotypes have been introduced to the US since the 1950s. This presentation will discuss the past, present, and future R&D efforts by the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s for protecting US waterways from hydrilla invasions.
• Jacksonville District Alligator Weed Flea Beetle Program – Chelsea Bohaty
  The Jacksonville District manages the Alligatorweed Biological Control Program; the presentation will go through the annual process to coordinate, capture, and distribute Alligatorweed Flea Beetles from Florida to other locations across the US; the service is free to requesting agencies and supports significant reductions in Alligatorweed infestations across the U.S. each year.
• Aquatic Plant Control Watercraft Inspection and Decontamination Activities – Jonas Grundman
• Rapid Response to Giant Salvinia in the St. Johns River Basin – Jessica Spencer

Chelsea Bohaty is a biologist in the Jacksonville District of the US Army Corps of Engineers with the Invasive Species Management Branch. She leads the Alligatorweed Biological Control Program to distribute alligatorweed flea beetles nationwide to help control invasive species. She and her colleagues employ integrated pest management to manage invasive plants throughout the state of Florida and beyond, focusing on the St Johns River system and Lake Okeechobee.

Dr. Benjamin Sperry is a Research Biologist and Leader of the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Aquatic Plant Management Team who conducts applied research to provide management solutions for aquatic plant control operations. His research focuses on aquatic and invasive plant management and he specializes in aquatic herbicide use-pattern develop for key invasive plants in the US. Dr. Sperry received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Florida in plant science and weed science, respectively. He earned his Ph.D. in weed science from Mississippi State University.

Brianna Treichler is a Natural Resource Specialist at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Blue Marsh Lake Project in Leesport, PA. She is the Partnership and Volunteer Coordinator at Blue Marsh Lake working with various state, local, educational, and non-profit institutions on projects related to environmental stewardship and recreation. In her role, one of her main focuses is integrating invasive species management practices into projects while also leading the Water Quality/Harmful Algal Bloom and Invasive Species Management programs. Brianna recently became the Chairperson for the USACE Invasive Species Leadership Team (ISLT), where she represents the USACE North Atlantic Division. Established in 2005, the ISLT is comprised of various individuals and researchers to provide oversight and guidance to the Invasive Species Program throughout the Corps.

Jessica Spencer is an invasive species biologist working for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the Jacksonville District for the Invasive Species Management Branch.  She has been in this position for 16 years, developing invasive species management plans, overseeing invasive species control contractors and collaborating with agency partners to address invasive species issues throughout the state of Florida, as well as other district offices throughout the nation.  She currently holds a Pesticide Applicator License from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  She is an active member of the Florida Native Plant Society, Florida Invasive Species Council, Everglades Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area and the First Coast Invasive Working Group.