Invasive mussels – they aren’t here yet and we don’t want them. That is the message being reinforced by the Okanagan and Similkameen Invasive Species Society (OASISS).
The non-profit society has collaborated with several organizations this summer to spread the message about keeping Zebra and Quagga Mussels out of the Okanagan-Similkameen. These invasive European mussels are not believed to occur in B.C. but could easily be transported here from infested lakes in the United States or the Great Lakes region of Canada. They were introduced to North America in the late 1980s.
Currently, there are no mandatory check point stations in B.C., unlike western U.S. states such as Idaho, where you cannot launch a boat unless you have been inspected. The Okanagan-based society launched a campaign this summer to educate recreational boaters about the dangers of invasive mussels and what they can do to prevent their spread.
“It would only take one boat infested with mussels to enter a lake in B.C. and there would be no turning back. We are trying to encourage everyone to take responsibility to help prevent invasive mussels from entering our waters,” states local biologist Lisa Scott, who is also the coordinator of OASISS.
Zebra and Quagga Mussels are thumbnail sized, freshwater mollusks that rapidly colonize hard surfaces and can clog water-intake structures, impact recreation and devastate local fisheries. In the Okanagan, the effects of their invasion would be felt at the commercial activity level, throughout the tourism sector and at the ecological level. Direct costs and lost revenues are estimated to be in excess of $45 million per year.
The society has recently partnered with local yacht clubs, marinas and other organizations to set up monitoring stations in key locations throughout the Okanagan Valley. One of those locations is the Vernon Yacht Club. An eight-metre long rope with small sections of PVC piping and plastic mesh was secured to one of the docks at the yacht club and launched into Okanagan Lake. The pipes and mesh provide an artificial surface for the invasive mussels to attach too. It’s proven a useful monitoring tool in the U.S. A sensor is also attached to the apparatus to record temperature and light. Members of OASISS and the yacht club will monitor the surfaces monthly until October, when it will be removed for the winter. Then the process will start all over again next spring.
“We are highly optimistic that we won’t find anything, however it’s important we monitor to be sure the mussels have not arrived,” said Scott.
