Strategic Documents

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) The MOU establishes the Sudbury-Assabet-Concord Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (SuAsCo CISMA). It describes the structure of the organization and when parties join SuAsCo CISMA, they sign the MOU.
Strategic Plan The plan is to guide management efforts within the watershed and determine priorities for management.
Annual Priority Actions A list of priority action items on a yearly basis categorized by the current subcommittees.

MOU

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishes the Sudbury-Assabet-Concord Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (SuAsCo-CISMA). The Parties to the MOU have a mutual interest in invasive plant control within the SUASCO watershed and recognize that uncontrolled invasive species populations in one jurisdiction greatly affect the ability of other land managers to control invasives on lands they administer.

The Parties desire to come together in a formal manner and promote an integrated invasive species management program throughout the SuAsCo CISMA that includes public relations, education, and training focused on invasive species, as well as, coordination of invasive species control efforts and methods, resource sharing, and other natural resource protection measures relative to invasive species management.

The Parties agree that it is to their mutual benefit and interest to work cooperatively to prevent the spread of invasive species across jurisdictional boundaries within the SuAsCo CISMA. They agree that it is mutually beneficial to inventory, monitor, and control invasive species; and to educate the public, other stakeholders, decision makers, and themselves about the problems with and solutions to invasive species proliferation.

Open the full MOU document


Strategic Plan

The Sudbury, Assabet and Concord Rivers (SuAsCo) watershed Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (CISMA) is a group of federal, state and local land owners and land managers committed to controlling invasive species within the watershed. The structure of the CISMA is detailed in the SUASCO CISMA Memorandum of Understanding. The CISMA group engages participants in a collaborative effort to share knowledge, expertise and resources as well as to coordinate invasive species management activities within the watershed.

Invasive species pose one of the greatest threats to the biodiversity, natural landscapes, agricultural interests, recreational activities, quality of life and scenic beauty of the watershed. There are many ways to deal with this threat including initial prevention, early detection, and control through manual removal, mechanical treatment, pesticide application, biological control, grazing and fire. Invasive species do not stop at ownership boundaries, and without a coordinated effort among a broad range of private and public land owners and land managers, these species will continue to invade our watershed, altering the habitat and reducing the recreational and aesthetic value of the watershed.

The intention of this plan is to guide management efforts within the watershed and determine priorities for management that will be detailed as Annual Priority Actions. The plan will be updated regularly to reflect new priorities within the watershed.

CISMA_Invasive Species Management Plan_2018-2023


SuAsCo CISMA Annual Report

Annual Priority Actions:

2021 APA

2020 APA

2019 APA

2013 APA

2012 APA

2011 APA

2010 APA