New Buoy-Marked Boating Lane Installed at Worden Pond

A new buoy-marked boating lane has been installed near the Worden Pond Boat Ramp to help guide motorboats through the smallest portion of the pond’s largest known hydrilla patch and into more open water. Boaters should follow the marked lane when entering and leaving the pond, as shown on the accompanying map.

Hydrilla is an invasive aquatic plant that can spread when pieces of the plant are cut by boat propellers. Even small fragments may remain viable, take root in other areas and contribute to the plant’s spread throughout the pond. The new lane is intended to reduce the amount of hydrilla chopped into fragments by passing boats. It may also decrease the number of times boaters need to stop and remove vegetation from their motors.

The buoys were purchased by the Wood-Pawcatuck Wild and Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council through a Southeast New England Program (SNEP) Mini-Grant from Restore America’s Estuaries While W. Stewardship Council volunteers spearheaded the project, the buoys were installed by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, with guidance and permitting provided by the RIDEM Office of Water Resources.

This boating lane is part of a broader, collaborative effort to manage hydrilla in Worden Pond. Together with the ongoing herbicide treatments, these measures are expected to reduce the number of viable plant fragments in the water, help limit the spread of hydrilla within Worden Pond and decrease the risk of fragments being transported by boats and equipment to other lakes and reservoirs throughout Rhode Island.

Boaters can support these efforts by following the marked lane, avoiding visible hydrilla patches whenever possible and carefully inspecting and cleaning all boats, motors, trailers and other equipment before leaving the boat ramp.

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