Don’t move a mussel.
Or Eurasian watermilfoil, spiny waterfleas or any other Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) during the upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend, advises the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
For this weekend and entire summer, the agency has considerably ramped up its boat inspections, enforcement efforts and educational campaign to prevent the spread of invasive zebra mussels and other AIS.
“This weekend is the start of the summer water-recreation season in Minnesota, and we need everyone’s cooperation to protect our waters,” said DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr. “While the DNR is devoting more resources than ever to this problem, it takes only one careless act to infest your favorite lake or river forever.”
This weekend, 100 watercraft inspectors will be stationed around the state, checking boats for AIS and advising water users of laws and practices that will keep invasive species from spreading. The DNR will also deploy 14 decontamination units at various water bodies around the state. The agency will concentrate inspectors and decontamination efforts at high-use water bodies that are currently infested with AIS.
“This goal is to ensure that all watercraft users in Minnesota are complying with state laws and are cleaning all aquatic plants, animals and mud from their watercraft, draining all water and leaving their drain plugs out,” said Heidi Wolf, DNR watercraft inspection program coordinator.
DNR conservation officers will also be actively checking watercraft users this weekend to make sure they are following state AIS laws. Results from enforcement efforts this spring indicate about 16 percent of watercraft users are violating state AIS laws.
One common violation is failure to keep a boat or livewell drain plug out and other water-draining devices open while transporting a watercraft. The law is designed to ensure that no water, which can carry microscopic invasive species like young zebra mussels, is being transported to other water bodies. The fine for not keeping a drain plug out is $50. It will increase to $100 on July 1, along with other AIS fines.
The DNR’s education campaign has increased significantly this year. The number of AIS billboards along major highways throughout the state has increased to 47, while the agency has increased its TV, radio and print media advertising on AIS and continued providing AIS prevention grants to many local organizations. The DNR recently began a new partnership with the Explore Minnesota Tourism to promote AIS prevention within the tourism industry.
Aquatic Invasive Species laws
Under state law, boaters must also:
Clean visible aquatic plants, zebra mussels and other prohibited species from watercraft, trailers and equipment before transporting from any water access.
Drain water from bilge, livewell, motor, ballast tanks and portable bait containers before leaving water accesses or shoreline property.
Keep drain plug out and water draining devices open while transporting watercraft.
Also under state law, it is illegal to:
Transport aquatic plants, water or prohibited invasive species such as zebra mussels or Eurasian watermilfoil.
Dump live bait into state waters, on shore or on the ground.
Launch, or attempt to place, watercraft, trailers or equipment with aquatic plants, zebra mussels, or prohibited invasive species into any state waters.
More information, including a new 25 minute video called "Aquatic Invasive Species, Minnesota Waters at Risk," is available at www.mndnr.gov/invasives.
Comments (7)
Add commenti am still waiting for someone to explain this...
how in the world did fish species get to land locked lakes without man stocking them?
Come on DNR experts please explain to me how you are going to keep birds from transporting exotic species.
Shut down fishing, boating and swimming and you are still going to be stuck with the bad situation of the exotics spreading.
Good GRIEF!
"Also under state law, it is illegal to:
Dump live bait into state waters, on shore or on the ground."
Unless we can learn to levitate them, where else is left? Are we supposed to EAT left over minnows?
Although a great post, the Department of Natural Restrictions will have NO part of your logic, i disagree with dems.......
That would be
chew polution!
zebra mussels
The DNR has lost the war. The Mississippi river is full of the mussels. They encrust everything they attach to and multiply by the thousands. Responsibility is clearly the boaters and fisherman who move thier boats from lake to lake. I checked out Rice Lake boat access on opening of fishing and 31 trailers of boats launched in the parking lot, but no DNR wash station, or inspectors on site. Why are the DNR not where the mussels have over taken a body of water or is it just public relations and a waiste of time and money. Boaters have not been responsible and now the lakes and rivers will continue to be added to the list of invasive species.
If you dont LEARN about aquatic invasive species ,or dont care
Its pretty likely you do dont appreciate MN ,water resources. Its even more likely at some point you will contribute to a looming problem ,that will only get worse. For starters either read about how rapidly Zebra mussels can multiply and choke off everything. (Thats going on in Lake Mille Lacs today).Or just follow the lead of the MN DNR is taking to save OUR resources. People who use water are the last line of defense.
captron and eyolf,
I care, I really care. The lakes provide me with recreation that I deeply care for. Bring much needed revenue to this area in the form of vacations, guides, tackle sales, etc. I power wash my boat after every trip a car wash. So dont think my argument is for exotics, all I am saying is you are not going to stop it even if you never allow man on water again.
With that said, where I grew up in Western Wisconsin, you seldomly snag any zebra mussels anymore. Why, nature balances itself out. Disease and predation. Same thing happened in Lake Erie. Eurasian milfoil hasnt done what they said it was going to do.
bluegills, crappies, bass species, white bass, many baitfish species and actually walleye all warm water species. The coldest water in North America does not produce walleyes so they can be included on that. They got here somehow and Agassiz was a cold water lake and they would have never survived. You can say evolution but that would be a record book evolution.
One thing I do know, there was not any fish that survived under miles of ice.
Not every lake has had water movements that interlock them since the ice age. Some yes. But there are too many lakes that have fish in it that are well above high water marks.
Have you ever seen where a blue heron eats? Have you ever seen an eagle or osprey grab a fish and drop it?
Some duck species eat zebra mussels and when they defecate, the spores from the zebra mussel will spread into other lakes. Thats the same with milfoil and other weeds. Exotic spores attach themselves to the feathers and legs of aquatic birds.
Think outside the government box for once. You want to believe in evolution, well, mother nature is evolving your lakes whether you want her to or not.
There was a post about boaters not being responsible...the government wasnt responsible in protecting our waters and now the average person gets the shaft again though government control.