{"id":329513,"date":"2025-10-24T16:08:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T16:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/329513\/"},"modified":"2025-10-24T16:08:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T16:08:21","slug":"michigan-cuts-invasive-species-money-despite-ongoing-environmental-threats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/329513\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan cuts invasive species money despite ongoing environmental threats"},"content":{"rendered":"

LANSING, MI \u2013 Invasive species will get less attention across Michigan in the coming year after cuts made to the state budget.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers sliced about $1.2 million from the Michigan invasive species grant program for 2026, cutting the annual funding by a third from $3.6 million to $2.4 million. Environmental experts said, however, that the complex problems caused by invasive species haven\u2019t diminished.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we\u2019re very happy we didn\u2019t lose any staff,\u201d said Joanne Foreman, spokesperson for the state Department of Natural Resources, \u201closing that \u2026 boots on the ground funding at some level is going to mean less gets done. That\u2019s just the bottom line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the budget<\/a> last month after a funding fight between the Republican-controlled House and Democrat-controlled Senate, including the threat of a state government shutdown<\/a>. A prior House Republican proposal <\/a>would have slashed the DNR budget by 10% and resulted in 430 lost jobs.<\/p>\n

State officials said core funding for Michigan\u2019s system of multi-county cooperative invasive species management areas (CISMAs) will be maintained in the approved budget. However, the pool of money for special projects is evaporating.<\/p>\n

\"FileThis MLive file photo shows an invasive Eurasian Watermilfoil infestation in Spring Valley Lake at Spring Valley Park in Kalamazoo, Mich., June 16, 2022. The pest weed spreads quickly and forms dense, floating vegetation mats in shallow areas. Milfoil can shade-out native aquatic plants and interfere with fish predation and recreational use. (Garret Ellison | MLive)<\/p>\n

Michigan has a network of 22 CISMAs that serve all 83 counties. Each of the organizations receives an annual $70,000 in base program funding for invasive species prevention, detection and control activities; that money keeps the basic programs intact.<\/p>\n

Beyond that, the co-ops apply for extra grant dollars for special projects. They compete for funding against other entities, like nonprofits, universities, and local, state, federal and tribal governments.<\/p>\n

The state program receives more than $7 million in grant requests each year, Foreman said.<\/p>\n

Related: <\/b>Michigan wetlands funding cut by two-thirds in new state budget<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many cool projects out there, but we can only fund this many of them, and that\u2019s always hard every year. And then to be like, we\u2019re funding even less of them is crazy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Michigan has faced catastrophic environmental harm from long-running battles with invasive species, like quagga and zebra mussels disrupting ecosystems and wrecking Great Lakes whitefish<\/a> populations.<\/p>\n

\"FileThis file photo shows lesser celandine, also known as fig buttercup, which is a low-growing perennial plant found in moist floodplains during the early spring. The shiny, dark-green leaves unfurl from a central rosette, and a bright yellow blossom usually opens with 8 or 12 petals.Katie Grzesiak<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, recent years brought new and problematic invasive species to Michigan\u2019s natural areas, such as lesser celandine<\/a>. That\u2019s a spring ephemeral flower that pops up along hiking trails and blankets low-lying floodplain forests with thick mats of greenery and little yellow blooms. It crowds out native spring wildflowers like trillium and orchids.<\/p>\n

The threat of even more invasive species harming Michigan\u2019s environment remains ever-present, Foreman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re looking at spotted lanternfly<\/a> just like becoming a huge nuisance in the East Coast all the way over now to Michigan,\u201d Foreman said.<\/p>\n

Related: <\/b>Ice storm not forgotten in Michigan\u2019s state budget. But will $14M be enough?<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Field experts in the fight against invasive species across Michigan also bemoaned the lost state funding for the work.<\/p>\n

Melissa Zelenek, of the Charlevoix Antrim Kalkaska Emmet CISMA, said it\u2019s good that invasive species core program funding was maintained, but it will be challenging for some co-ops to do any extra projects.<\/p>\n

\"MLiveThis MLive file photo shows spotted lanternflies as they blacken a tree-of-heaven trunk at a property along Airport Highway in Toledo, Ohio, Oct. 4, 2024. The vacant property is a Michigan State University Extension lanternfly trap site. The invasive pest secretes a sap that molds trees and attracts wasps. The bugs moved from Toledo into Michigan this year. They have been found in Monroe, Wayne and Oakland counties, an escalation of lanternfly presence in Michigan. (Garret Ellison | MLive)Garret Ellison<\/p>\n

\u201cInvasive species is the last thing that should be cut,\u201d she said. \u201cBut if the state is going to cut services, I hope somehow they are going to support private landowners with at least some education on how to manage them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Jackson Lenawee Washtenaw CISMA in Southeast Michigan posted on social media<\/a> to announce the \u201cbad news\u201d about the reduced state funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis means a likely reduction in services that we can provide. We are heartbroken to hear this,\u201d the post read. \u201cIt is hard to not take it a bit personally as many of us put our heart and soul in working to protect (the) natural resources that Michiganders are proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last month, state officials announced the grant application process with the anticipated larger bank of money, a timeline that allows for grant dollars to be awarded by the following March.<\/p>\n

Grant requests for this next cycle of competitive funding are due by Nov. 1. General invasive species project requests can range from $25,000 to $400,000.<\/p>\n