Okanagan’s $688,000 new milfoil harvester is first of its kind in North America

James Littley, OBWB’s deputy administrator, said it’s the first amphibious harvester in North America.

“The reason it’s different is because it can launch itself, it can take itself off a trailer and go into the lake. It can also load itself up and bring the weeds up the beach where the truck can reach them, so that’s functionality that our old machines didn’t have,” Littley told Vernon Matters.

Vernon Mayor Victor Cumming along with officials from the Okanagan Basin Water Board and manufacturer Berky, pose on the new milfoil harvester at Paddlewheel Park on June 20. (Vernon Matters photo)

The new machine is replacing a 1978 harvester, and is designed to cut the top five feet of the milfoil and carry almost two and a half tons at a time to the beach. The load is then collected by a Water Board truck and the weeds are given away for compost for orchards and gardens.

“We treat six major lakes from the north end of Okanagan Lake, all the way down to the border in Osoyoos and we have two harvesters. So it [the new machine] will be used in Vernon this summer, but mostly in Vaseux and Osoyoos lakes because the other harvester can continue to do the work here. We just don’t have the same boat launch issue here that we do in the south,” Littley explained.

Littley said the $688,000 (Canadian) cost is justified.

“It was between this and a standard harvester and we just can’t get away with standard harvesters in some of the scenarios we need to nowadays, so this is a major upgrade in terms of our capability to treat milfoil.”

Littley said the fact the public doesn’t hear a lot of milfoil problems in lakes anymore is a good thing.

“It’s because of machines like this and my operators being out there, particularly during the winter. If we can rototill it and de-root it from the lake bed during the winter, it reduces the density by as much as 90 per cent.”

Littley said back in the 1970’s, milfoil covered large sections of the Okanagan’s waterfront before the rototilling program was introduced and cleaned it up.

“There are still patches that we don’t treat and they are thick with milfoil, but they tend to be farther away from our public beaches. We definitely prioritize our public beach areas first.”

Littley said the harvesters operate in July and August when the weeds are growing, and the de-rooting is done with a different machine in the winter when the plant is dormant and can’t spread.

“That starts around mid-October and goes right up until the end of April.”

Littley added they generally only give one cut to each specific area over the summer due to limited equipment and to allow for coverage throughout the Okanagan.

Meantime, the Water Board is turning to the public for suggestions about a name for the new harvester.

“People can submit to our email address. We’re looking for creative names. So far, we’ve basically called the machines based on the colour of their paint, and we think this is an interesting enough machine that it deserves an interesting name,” Littley remarked.

Name suggestions can be emailed to communications director Corinne Jackson: Corinne.Jackson@obwb.ca

by Pete McIntyre

Okanagan’s $688,000 new milfoil harvester is first of its kind in North America

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