The mussels from Brussels may be a welcome sight on the silver screen but not in B.C.’s waterways, as conservation officers open their boat inspection stations across the province.
The province’s Invasive Mussel Defence Program is active once again to keep zebra and quagga mussels out of B.C.’s lakes and rivers.
The Defence Program is delivered by the B.C. government and backed by the Columbia Basin Trust, BC Hydro, FortisBC and other organizations.
Columbia Basin Trust Chief Operating Officer Aimee Ambrosone says zebra and quagga mussels pose a threat to environments and economies if they gain a foothold in new waterways.
“These very small mussels can grow very quickly to clog water systems. That could be a hydropower facility, a water system used for agricultural production, a municipal water system, or it could just mean a beach that you’re walking on,” said Ambrosone.
“All of those things could become challenging to use because of those mussels.”
B.C. officials say it is mandatory for anyone towing a watercraft to stop at an inspection station.
Boat owners also have a role in preventing the spread of zebra and quagga mussels.
“Clean, Drain, Dry is a program to educate watercraft lovers to do their part to protect our waterways from aquatic invasive species by having their boats clean, any water drained out and making sure it’s completely dry before launching it into a new water body,” said Central Kootenay Invasive Species Society education coordinator Laurie Frankcom.
In 2024, conservation officers conducted about 24,500 inspections and found only 12 mussel-fouled watercraft.
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