A note from Mat Morris, Town of Greece Water Chestnut Project Lead (6/22/26)

Good day everyone,

A sincere thank you to all of you for sharing your interest in the water chestnut situation. From turning out to community workshops at the Town Hall, to going door-to-door and to neighborhood association meetings informing other residents about the situation, our community has truly shown up motivated to turn the tide on this pressing issue!

Well, the time is finally here: water chestnut hand-pull events start this week! All events run from 10am-1pm.

Here are the dates:

24^th June – Salmon Creek (Wed)

27^th June – Long Pond (Sat)

1^st July – Braddock Bay (Wed)

8^th July – Buck Pond (Wed)

11^th July – Salmon Creek (Sat)

15^th July – Buck Pond (Wed)

18^th July – Salmon Creek (Sat)

22^nd July – Braddock Bay (Wed)

25^th July – Braddock Bay (Sat)

29^th July – Cranberry Pond (Wed)

1^st August – Long Pond (Sat)

To attend any of these events, please RSVP to me (Mat Morris MMORRIS@GREECENY.GOV) by letting me know which events you’d like to attend. It would also be nice to know if you have a kayak/canoe/boat and a life jacket available, and if you’re launching from your own dock or not. The host organizations will try and provide equipment to volunteers who don’t have it. If you have extras of any supplies, feel free to bring it, as it may come in handy for a fellow volunteer!

As soon as you RSVP, I will send you a document with all of the parking, logistics, etc. that you will need to know ahead of time. When you arrive at an event, there will be signage informing where to park, as well as a check-in table with designated staff to ensure you sign a waiver and also answer any questions you may have before getting in the water. There will also be maps showing where we are focusing our efforts and a water chestnut ID photo so you know what you’re looking for. A reminder to please check your email ~1 hour before an event begins to check if it has been cancelled due to weather. You will only receive this email if you RSVP to the event.

Now that the water chestnut is really starting to appear on the surface, over the next couple of weeks we at the Town will be sending up our aerial drone to analyze the current infestation and identify new growth areas. One area that we know the plant has expanded to this year is the central eastern shore of Long Pond. As we learn more, we will tailor our hand-pull events to prioritize every area accordingly. Early detection/rapid response of new populations is vital to prevent outbreaks from worsening.

The Town now has a dedicated webpage for water chestnut, which you can find by clicking here. There you can find some information about our regional partners, a sign-up form for the hand-pull events, and some basic info about the water chestnut, including a link to a NYS DEC factsheet on the plant.

Thank you for all of your attention to this issue. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have, I’m happy to help. Again, please let me know which upcoming events you plan to attend, if any.

See you out on the water, starting this week!

Mat Morris

Town of Greece Water Chestnut Project Lead