The province says no invasive mussels were found in Saskatchewan waters this year.
According to the government, the 2018 invasive mussel monitoring program confirmed no mussels were found in 121 bodies of water sampled in the province.
“We are pleased to see that our prevention efforts were successful once again last year,” Environment Minister Dustin Duncan said in a news release. “Our government focuses on public awareness through education and targeted signage about our Clean, Drain, Dry program, roadside boat inspections, decontaminations and regular monitoring of Saskatchewan’s busy waterbodies.”
The Environment Ministry also says it checked more than 2,900 watercrafts for signs of aquatic invasive species (AIS). Of those boats, 830 were identified as high-risk and needed further inspection. Fifty boats had to be decontaminated and quarantined before they could go back into Saskatchewan waters.
The province was able to monitor the waters through a variety of partners in the AIS task force, including the University of Saskatchewan, the Ministries of Agriculture and Parks, Culture and Sport, and SaskWater..
“Aquatic invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels pose a serious threat to our lakes and waterways,” Duncan said. “Prevention is the most effective way to control their spread, as they can be impossible to eliminate if they become established in a waterbody.”
Anyone transporting watercrafts in Saskatchewan must remove boat plugs, stop at inspection stations and submit to an inspection, or be subject to a $500 fine.
It’s also illegal to bring aquatic invasive species into the province.
