Province increasing preventative measures in fight against invasive mussels
LETHBRIDGE – The province is stepping up efforts to keep aquatic invasive species out of Alberta.
With the discovery of zebra mussel larvae in Montana, and a growing issue in provinces like Manitoba and Ontario, the provincial government has added two new inspection stations, extended the inspection season and brought in an additional 30 boat inspectors.
“In Alberta, we don’t have an infestation of mussels yet, and we would like to keep it that way,” said Environment and Parks Minister, Shannon Phillips. “It is an enormously expensive problem to solve, and so preventing it has got to be the number one priority. It’s estimated that it would cost our irrigation and our government about $75-million dollars a year to control for aquatic invasive species like mussels.”
In contrast, the budget for prevention this year is set at $1.7-million.