Mandatory boat decontamination in effect after zebra mussels detected in Lake Manitoba: province

WINNIPEG -

Mandatory watercraft decontamination is now in effect for boats and other water-related equipment used in Lake Manitoba before being put in any other waters, according to a provincial release Tuesday.

The measures come after juvenile zebra mussels, also called zebra mussel veligers, were detected in nine water samples taken during monitoring from Lake Manitoba Narrows in July.

“We need to ensure boaters and all surface water users get on board with protecting our environment and help contain the new finding of zebra mussels in Lake Manitoba,” said Resource Development Minister Ralph Eichler in the release.

New signage will be put in place around the lake and its access points, like boat launches, advising lake users of the new requirement.

The province said the discovery of the zebra mussels could indicate a reproductive population of the aquatic invasive species. They can impact local ecosystems and native fish populations, clog water intakes, foul watercraft and their engines, and litter beaches and shorelines.

Irvin Koch, the owner of Narrows Sunset Lodge located at Lake Manitoba Narrows, said news of the zebra mussel discovery in Lake Manitoba Narrows waters came as a surprise, but said it was inevitable seeing their prevalence in Lake Winnipeg.

“I’m not concerned about it. I sure don’t like to see the zebra mussels in our lake, but if they’re coming there’s nothing we can do about it,” said Koch.

In the short-term, Koch doesn’t feel the impacts of zebra mussels will affect tourism to the area.

“Zebra mussels have been in Lake Winnipeg for a long time and I think the walleye fish population is going well there. There’s a lot of good fishing on Lake Winnipeg and there’s excellent walleye fishing here,” said Koch.

Koch did have enforcement concerns, questioning how the province was going to be able to police the new mandatory boat decontamination.

As well as informing the public to help contain the infestation, Manitoba will also be conducting additional monitoring to determine the extent of the zebra mussel infestation, and appropriate control zones will be established under the Aquatic Invasive Species Regulation of the Water Protection Act.

“We know that Manitobans support our effort to prevent the spread of AIS (aquatic invasive species), and most boaters are responsible about following the steps to clean, drain, dry and decontaminate their equipment,” said Eichler.

More information on aquatic invasive species and resources on how you can help stop the spread of zebra mussels can be found at https://www.manitoba.ca/stopais/.