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Province increasing preventative measures in fight against invasive mussels

May 12, 2017 | 12:49 PM

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.

While enforcement levels have never been higher – including 60 inspectors, three mussel-sniffing dogs and two roving inspection crews moving between boat launches – the province is asking boaters to become a bigger part of their efforts as well.

“What we ask boaters to do is ensure that their boats are clean, drained and dry every time they leave a water body,” explained Cindy Sawchuk, lead of the Watercraft Inspections and Decontamination program and Conservation K-9 program. “That will help us effectively eliminate the risk of transporting these species and introducing them into Alberta.

“As long as the boat that comes through our station doesn’t have any standing water, as long as it doesn’t have any mud or weeds attached to it… your inspection will be much quicker,” Sawchuk added.

She also noted that it’s mandatory to stop at inspection stations, regardless of what type of boat you have, saying that while watercrafts like kayaks and canoes are less likely to transport mussels, it is still possible.

If inspectors find an invasive species on your boat, they can clean them off using high-pressure, hot water.

Those that try to bypass an open inspection station while carrying a water-based vessel, could face a fine of up to $100,000 or 12 months in jail.

Once in a waterway, an infestation is virtually impossible to eradicate and begins to strip the nutrients from the water, leaving very little food for native species. The impact on plant and animal life alters the chemistry and clarity of the water, which can then start clogging water intake structures like dams, water treatment facilities, hydro-power facilities, docks, breakwaters, buoys, boats and beaches.

The mussels are also capable of producing millions of eggs and can reach numbers in the tens of thousands per square metre.

In 2016, inspectors checked 19,028 watercraft as they entered Alberta, and 17 were found to be carrying mussels, 14 of which came from Ontario – a province that currently spends roughly $90-million to fight the infestation there.