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Boaters, beware: Hunt is on for mussel invaders

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on July 3, 2008 at 7:44 am

From the Sacramento Bee:

Boaters heading for area lakes this Fourth of July should expect to give an accounting of where they’ve been and what they may have picked up along the way. Authorities are on the lookout for quagga and zebra mussels, invasive species known to hitchhike from one body of water to another by attaching themselves to boat trailers, hulls, engines and steering components.

Agencies from Lake Tahoe to Folsom Lake are taking measures to keep the mussels – which no one knows how to get rid of – out of their waters. Efforts range from educating the public through billboards and brochures, to surveying boat owners and inspecting watercraft before they’re launched.

“We have 13 inspectors out at various launches inspecting and doing risk assessments,” Nicole Cartwright of the Tahoe Resource Conservation District said last week. She is part of the Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Working Group.

She said decontamination stations will operate around the lake this weekend to handle watercraft found to harbor mussels.

Read more from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.

July 3, 2008 · Filed Under Invasive Species

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