At issue is the endangered northern cricket frog in the Orange County village of Florida. The state Department of Environmental Conservation awarded the village a $48,000 grant to treat Glenmore Lake, the village drinking water supply, with herbicide to kill watermilfoil. The weed isn't a danger, but it makes the lake less inviting for recreation.
Now, the state has called a halt to the controversial herbicide treatment unless the village can prove it won't harm the endangered frog.
The frog is also standing in the way of a major residential development planned for the lake shore.
Howard Horowitz, an environmental studies professor at Ramapo College, says village officials need to consider more nature-friendly alternatives to herbicides.
