Melaleuca Management Plan for Florida: Recommendations from the Melaleuca Task Force: Exotic Pest Plant Council

Exotic Pest Plant Council

The Melaleuca Management Plan was developed to provide criteria to make recommendations for the integrated management of melaleuca in Florida. The original plan was published in April of 1990. This is the second edition and it should be periodically updated to reflect changes in management philosophy and operational advancements. A multi-agency task force organized from the Exotic Pest Plant Council by the South Florida Water Management District convened in 1990 to develop a comprehensive plan for controlling Melaleuca quinquenervia in Florida. The task force was composed of scientists and natural resource managers representing federal, state, and local agencies charged with protecting and managing the wetlands that comprise Florida's Everglades. The Task force recommendations were as follows: 1. Acquire funds that can be used to accelerate current efforts to locate, screen, implement, and evaluate biological control agents for use against melaleuca. 2. Enhance efforts using mechanical and chemical controls to establish a melaleuca-free zone along the boundaries of the Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, the Water Conservation Areas, the Holey Land, and Lake Okeechobee. 3. Encourage public and private land owners to remove melaleuca infestations from within the buffer zone. 4. Implement an effective public awareness campaign directed toward encouraging support for me/a/euca management issues.