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Wildlife officials to inspect boats for invasive mussels
By Matt Weiser - mweiser@sacbee.com
Last Updated 10:05 pm PDT Tuesday, May 13, 2008
California wildlife officials will inspect northbound trailered boats on Interstate 5 before the Memorial Day weekend in order to avoid spreading the invasive zebra and quagga mussels to more state waters.
The inspections will take place May 22 and 23 from 2 to 8 p.m. at the CHP Cottonwood Inspection Facility, or truck scales, in Tehama County. State game wardens will ask vessel owners a series of questions. Vessels found to be clean will be released. Suspect vessels will be inspected by trained biologists and detection dogs, and those that may be harboring mussels could be quarantined.
"We intend to defer every vehicle with watercraft through the scales for inspection," said Capt. Sherry Howell of the Department of Fish and Game. "Our goal is to process watercraft as quickly as possible, but as thoroughly as possible."
Quagga mussels were first detected in the Colorado River system in January 2007, and zebra mussels were found a year later in San Justo Reservoir in San Benito County. Boats are the primary transporters of these invasive mussels, which spread rapidly and attach to water infrastructure, causing clogs and damage.
To help prevent the spread of invasive mussels and ease the inspection process, boaters should examine all exposed hull surfaces, wash boats thoroughly, remove any plant matter from boats and trailers, drain all water including from outboard motors, and clean and dry all livewells and bait buckets. Most importantly, all vessels should be dried for at least five days between launches in different water bodies.
For more information, boaters can call the state's invasive mussels hotline at (866) 440-9530 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or visit Department of Fish and Game.
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