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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

INVASION!

Volunteers learn to stop spread of aquatic pests

Jodi Summit
Posted 4/24/15

GREENWOOD TWP- About 45 area residents got ready to do their part to prevent aquatic invasive species (AIS) from entering Lake Vermilion and other area lakes.

Keri Hull, the DNR Regional …

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INVASION!

Volunteers learn to stop spread of aquatic pests

Posted

GREENWOOD TWP- About 45 area residents got ready to do their part to prevent aquatic invasive species (AIS) from entering Lake Vermilion and other area lakes.

Keri Hull, the DNR Regional Watercraft Inspection Supervisor from Brainerd, led the three-and-a-half-hour class at the Greenwood Town Hall last Saturday, which included both classroom time learning about AIS rules, AIS identification, and how to interact with the public, plus hands-on boat inspecting sessions. Participants included many members of the Vermilion Sportsmen’s Club, along with other interested residents, including high school students and teachers from the Vermilion Country Charter School, members of the White Iron Chain of Lakes Association (WICOLA), Pelican Lake, and Burntside also attended.

The DNR Boat Inspection Training was sponsored by the Sportsmen’s Club of Lake Vermilion.

“AIS has become the number one priority of the Sportsmen’s Club,” said Robert Wilson, who has headed the club’s educational efforts on AIS for the past ten years. He said the club has a core group of members focusing on the issue of preventing the spread of AIS into Vermilion. The Sportsmen’s Club has been working on issues relating to AIS since the mid-1980s, when the rusty crayfish was identified as a problem. In 2012, curly-leaf pondweed was found near the public water access on Everett Bay, and treated by the Sportsmen’s Club. The club is most concerned about zebra mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil, and spiny waterfleas, which have all been found in northern Minnesota lakes and streams, and have the potential to adversely impact the lake and its fishery.

During the class, attendees learned how to identify invasive species, how to conduct a thorough inspection of boats at public landings, and how to interact with and educate the boating public.

The program is part of the DNR’s AIS Ambassador and Volunteer Program. The program allows trained volunteers to request to inspect boats entering and leaving the lake. Watercraft users are not required to speak with or allow the inspection. If any violations are observed, boaters would be informed of the issue and told how to fix it so they comply with state laws.

AIS ambassadors must have attended training, and must undergo a background check. AIS volunteers, in addition, must register as a DNR volunteer and are generally representing a specific group, in this case the Sportsmen’s Club.

The Sportsmen’s Club of Lake Vermilion has been doing AIS boat inspections for the past 10 years. The club’s efforts, said Wilson, are mostly spent on the most busy public water access spots on the lake, including Hoodoo Point, Moccasin Point, and Frazer Bay. Other inspection points have been at Head O’ Lakes and The Landing on the west end. Inspections are mostly held on busy weekends, such as fishing opener, and summer holidays. The DNR also does official boat inspections on Lake Vermilion during the summer. This year they will have a boat decontamination unit at the Hoodoo Point public landing for the Governor’s Fishing Opener, where they are expecting a lot of boat traffic in and out. This unit can safely clean boats that may have been exposed to AIS.

“We find clean boats almost 100 percent of the time,” said Wilson. “We’ve been lucky that people aren’t dragging weeds in here.”

But volunteer inspectors often have found boats that are not following the rules regarding drain plugs, according to Wilson.

State law requires that all boats are drained, which means plugs must be pulled from all spaces that can hold water, except for wastewater holding tanks. This helps prevent the spread of AIS, especially microscopic zebra mussel larvae (veligers), which are free-floating and can be easily moved from lake to lake.

The DNR will fine boaters $100 for drain plug violations, Wilson said, but volunteer inspectors do not levy any fines. Their goal, Wilson said, is to educate.

The Sportsmen’s Club is also applying to St. Louis County for additional grant money to do additional invasive species surveys in the lake. Wilson said they are hoping to get funding to bring in specialists to do surveys of aquatic weeds, to see if any invasive species are present. Funding may also be available to hire boat inspectors.

Clean – Drain - Dry

State law has made it illegal to transport any type of aquatic plants on boats or trailers. All boaters can help stop the spread of AIS by following these simple guidelines:

All aquatic vegetation needs to be removed before leaving a water access point and before entering any water body. A small fragment of milfoil can live several days out of the water and then infest another lake. Zebra mussels and other invasive species also attach themselves to aquatic plants. It is also illegal to transport zebra mussels, snails, spiny water fleas, and other species that attach themselves to the hull of a boat or boating equipment. One adult zebra mussel can produce up to one million eggs per summer, and quickly infest a lake.

Clean- Inspect the boat and trailer closely and remove all plants, animals, and mud. This is state law.

Drain- Drain spaces or items that can hold water. Remove drain plugs and open all other water-draining devices. This is state law.

Dry- Let a boat dry for five days or more before launching in other waters.

For more information visit www.sportsmensclublakevermilion.org, or to download the volunteer AIS handbook, visit www.dnr.state.mn.us and search for the AIS Volunteer Handbook.