BALDWIN COUNTY, Ga. — Dozens of Lake Sinclair people are using Facebook to share their concerns over a invasive species called hydrilla.
It arrived in Georgia from Florida in the 1950s, but now folks say it's clogging the shorelines.
We visited the lake to learn more.
Hydrilla is growing in the water at Lake Sinclair.
However, lake owners are saying it's a problem because they are spending hundreds of dollars to manage it.
Paula Thompson remembers the first time she noticed hydrilla growing in her cove.
"We walked down to the dock and we were like, 'What is this?! What is going on? There is stuff growing everywhere.' You couldn't even see the bottom. It was just all over the place," Paula said.
Depending on which company she uses, she spends anywhere from $150 to $450 to hire someone, per treatment, to get rid of it.
Paula said, "We have to get a permit from Georgia permit for them to actually come and a certain people to actually spray it, but it doesn't. It's a temporary fix. People come in and out of it from our neighborhood and people chop it up on their motors and so the entire cove is just covered where you can't even get out of the cove."
Georgia Power spokesperson Holly Crawford says they own and manage Lake Sinclair, but they only spray for hydrilla in the main channels of the lake.
"This has just been something that the company has done for years actually. Like I said, we are always constantly looking for ways to aid and help our lake residents. We're always open to exploring new ways, but for right now, residents are required to treat their own area," Crawford said.
Thompson said, "Me thinking this is a Georgia Power lake, I thought they were controlling things, making things more beautiful and everything. I just thought they'd be more responsible with help treating the hydrilla."
Hydrilla comes back each summer, because some chemicals only kill the foliage and not the root.
Georgia Power has some helpful tips to help lake owners manage the spread of hydrilla:
- Inspect your boat tailor for hydrilla, especially if you visited another lake and come back to Lake Sinclair.
- Never physically try to remove the hydrilla with rakes or other tools. The fragments break and float away to other areas of the lake.