CHAPTER 54
RESTRICTIONS ON INTRODUCTION AND REMOVAL OF PLANT LIFE
[Prior to 12/31/86, Conservation Commission[290] Ch 47]
571—54.1(461A) Mushrooms and asparagus. Lands under the jurisdiction of the commission shall be open for the harvesting of mushrooms and asparagus during the hours the areas are open to the public.
[ARC 8594B, IAB 3/10/10, effective 4/14/10]
571—54.2(461A) Fruit. Lands under the jurisdiction of the commission shall be open for the harvesting of all varieties of nuts, fruits, and berries unless signs are posted prohibiting such activity. Nut, fruit, and berry gathering shall be permitted only during the hours the areas are open to the public and shall not be permitted in state preserves unless otherwise allowed by the preserves management plan.
[ARC 8594B, IAB 3/10/10, effective 4/14/10]
571—54.3(461A) American ginseng. The harvesting of American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) is subject to regulation by 571—Chapter 78.
This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code sections 456A.24(11) and 461A.41.
[ARC 8594B, IAB 3/10/10, effective 4/14/10]
571—54.4(461A) Trees. The commercial harvest of trees from lands under the jurisdiction of the commission shall be done in accordance with 561—8.5(17A,456A,461A) and 561—8.6(455B), according to the department’s Forest Ecosystem Management Guide, approved by the natural resource commission on December 8, 1994, and hereby adopted by reference.
This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code sections 461A.35 and 461A.41.
571—54.5(461A) Aquatic plants. This rule applies to the introduction and removal of plants in public waters as those waters are defined by rule 571—13.2(455A,461A,462A). For purposes of this rule, aquatic plants are those listed in subrule 54.5(6) and include vegetation that exists at or below the ordinary high water line of a waterway.
	54.5(1) Permits.
	a. 	The department may issue permits for the introduction and removal of aquatic plants in public waters. To be considered for a permit under this rule, applicants shall use the department’s application form for sovereign lands construction permits, as described in rule 571—13.9(455A,461A,462A), and shall complete all relevant information on that application form. Applicants shall also provide any additional information as may be necessary, as described in rule 571—13.10(455A,461A). The term of the permit shall be stated in the permit. Permits are nontransferable and shall be subject to reevaluation upon expiration. Permits may be issued for between one and five years.
	b. 	Cities and counties in Iowa may use chemicals, including pesticides and herbicides, to remove aquatic vegetation from water intake structures. However, such cities and counties shall be required to obtain a permit under this rule and rules in 567—Chapter 66, as may be required, for such activities.
	54.5(2) Evaluation. The department shall evaluate all permits sought under this rule in accordance with the evaluation criteria enumerated in rule 571—13.6(455A,461A,462A). In addition, the department shall consider the following criteria:
	a. 	For aquatic plant introduction:
	(1)	Unless otherwise approved by the department, all introduced plants shall be included in the list provided in subrule 54.5(6);
	(2)	Introduced plants shall not include cultivars;
	(3)	Plants shall be introduced for the purposes of preventing shoreline erosion, stabilizing bottom sediment, providing fish or wildlife habitat, or removing nutrients from the water;
	(4)	Plants shall be thoroughly rinsed away from the water into which they are being introduced prior to being transported to the site if the plants have not been cultivated on site in a manner to prevent any foreign nonplant or seed material from entering the water prior to introduction; and
	(5)	Plants shall be obtained from a seed source that is within 50 miles of the introduction area and from stocks of only cultivated material (i.e., material that has not been taken from natural areas) or from a source that is approved by the department. Approval for a seed source may be sought from the department by contacting the area fisheries management biologist.
	b. 	For aquatic plant removal:
	(1)	The plants shall be removed by hand-cutting, hand-pulling, hand-raking or mechanical cutting only;
	(2)	The plants shall be removed to establish a designated travel lane from a boat dock that has been permitted in accordance with 571—Chapter 16. Such travel lane shall not exceed a 15-foot width, and the placement of such lane shall be subject to the review and approval of the department. A travel lane allowed under this rule may be in the same location during the term of the permit, may be sited by the department to accommodate vegetation, and may not necessarily be the most direct path from the dock to the open water area; and
	(3)	All plant material removed under the permit must be left in place or collected and composted on the land owned, leased or otherwise subject to use by the applicant that is adjacent to the removal area.
Unless otherwise provided by this rule, in no event may a person be allowed to apply chemicals including, without limitation, pesticides or herbicides to remove aquatic plants from public waters. For nonpublic waters that meet certain designations in 567—Chapter 66, a person may be required to seek a permit under the rules established herein to use pesticides.
	54.5(3) Inspection requirements. For the purpose of inspecting for compliance with permit conditions, the department shall have the right to enter the property attached to the public water at or near the place of introduction or removal. This inspection shall include, without limitation, identification of introduced species; a determination as to whether the travel lane is being maintained in accordance with the permit conditions; and whether plant material, if removed, is left on site.
	54.5(4) Violations. Persons in violation of this rule are guilty of a simple misdemeanor as described by Iowa Code section 461A.57.
	54.5(5) Exceptions.
	a. 	A dock permittee whose dock meets rule 571—16.4(461A,462A), 571—16.6(461A,462A), or 571—16.7(461A,462A) may remove aquatic vegetation without a permit if the aquatic vegetation:
	(1)	Creates a hazardous or detrimental condition in the boating area around the dock, or
	(2)	Covers a minimum of 75 percent of the boating area around the dock.
	b. 	A dock permittee meeting one of the exceptions in paragraph 54.5(5)“a” must verify at inspection that the dock meets the criteria for a Class I, Class II or Class III dock permit and is limited to the following:
	(1)	Removal of vegetation in a 20-foot radius around the dock;
	(2)	Removal of a hazardous or detrimental condition when it interferes with safe boating passage and is located within the boating area around the dock;
	(3)	Creation of a 15-foot-wide boating pathway utilizing a direct route from the dock to open water;
	(4)	Adherence to the requirement to leave the vegetation in place or collect and compost it on land that is owned, leased or otherwise subject to use by the dock permittee and is adjacent to the removal area;
	(5)	Removal of the vegetation by hand-cutting, hand-pulling, hand-raking or mechanical cutting devices, excluding automated plant control devices that disturb the bottom substrate.
	54.5(6) Appropriate plants. The department is committed to maintaining the natural integrity of public waters in the state and strengthening native populations of vegetation and wildlife in those waters. To that end, the following table comprises the plants that may be permitted to be introduced into public waters:

Scientific Name	Common Name	
Acorus americanus	Sweet Flag	
Alisma plantago-aquatica	Water Plantain	
Asclepias incarnata	Marsh Milkweed	
Bidens cernua	Nodding Beggars Ticks	
Bidens coronata	Tickseed Sunflower	
Brasenia schreberi	Water Shield	
Calamagrostis canadensis	Blue Joint Grass	
Caltha palustris	Marsh Marigold	
Carex atherodes	Wheat Sedge	
Carex comosa	Longhair Sedge	
Carex cristatella	Crested Sedge	
Carex hystericina	Bottlebrush Sedge	
Carex lacustris	Hairy Sedge	
Carex normalis	Greater Straw Sedge	
Carex pellita	Wooly Sedge	
Carex prairea	Prairie Sedge	
Carex scoparia	Broom Sedge	
Carex stipata	Awlfruit Sedge	
Carex stricta	Upright Sedge	
Carex tribuloides	Blunt Broom Sedge	
Carex vulpinoidea	Fox Sedge	
Ceratophyllum demersum	Coontail	
Eleocharis acicularis	Needle Spikerush	
Eleocharis obtuse	Blunt Spikerush	
Elodea canadensis	Canada Waterweed	
Eupatorium perfoliatum	Boneset	
Glyceria striata	Fowl Manna Grass	
Iris versicolor	Blue Flag Iris	
Juncus dudleyi	Dudley’s Rush	
Juncus torreyi	Torrey’s Rush	
Leersia oryzoides	Rice Cutgrass	
Lobelia siphilitica	Great Lobelia	
Lysimachia ciliate	Fringed Loosestrife	
Lythrum alatum	Winged Loosestrife	
Muhlenbergia mexicana	Leafy Satin Grass	
Muhlenbergia racemosa	Marsh Muhly	
Nymphea tuberosa	White Water Lily	
Poa palustris	Fowl Bluegrass	
Polygonum amphibium	Water Smartweed	
Pontederia cordata	Pickerelweed	
Potamogeton nodosus	Longleaf Pondweed	
Ranunculus secleratus	Cursed Crowfoot	
Sagittaria latifolia	Broadleaf Arrowhead	
Schoenoplectus acutus	Hardstem Bulrush	
Schoenoplectus fluviatilis	River Bulrush	
Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani	Soft-Stem Bulrush	
Scirpus atrovirens	Green Bulrush	
Sparganium eurycarpum	Giant Burreed	
Spartina pectinata	Prairie Cord Grass	
Stuckenia pectinatus	Sago Pondweed	
Typha latifolia	Broadleaf Cattail	
In addition, an applicant may propose, as part of the application, species that do not appear on this list, which the department will consider. The department’s consideration of species not on this list will be based on the commitment described above as well as the potential impact of the proposed species to the public water and ecosystem.
[ARC 8594B, IAB 3/10/10, effective 4/14/10; ARC 1703C, IAB 10/29/14, effective 12/3/14]
These rules are intended to implement Iowa Code chapter 461A.
[Filed emergency 2/9/76—published 2/23/76, effective 2/9/76]
[Filed 3/9/84, Notice 2/1/84—published 3/28/84, effective 5/3/84]
[Filed emergency 8/8/85—published 8/28/85, effective 8/28/85]
[Filed without Notice 12/12/86—published 12/31/86, effective 2/4/87]
[Filed 8/11/95, Notice 6/7/95—published 8/30/95, effective 10/4/95]
[Filed ARC 8594B (Notice ARC 8332B, IAB 12/2/09), IAB 3/10/10, effective 4/14/10]
[Filed ARC 1703C (Notice ARC 1564C, IAB 8/6/14), IAB 10/29/14, effective 12/3/14]