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ENLARGE
Ryan Dippel of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife tests out a mobile boat cleaning sprayer during a seminar on invasive species at the Roseburg ODFW office on Thursday.
So you know ...
State, county and Portland State University officials will lead another public training on how boaters can help stop the spread of aquatic invasive species from 1 to 4 p.m. June 18 at the lodge at Diamond Lake Resort, 350 Resort Drive, off Highway 138 East.
Boaters who notice aquatic invasive species are asked to call (866) INVADER or to note their findings on the Web site, oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Both services also provide information on identifying aquatic invasive species.
Boaters who find evidence of zebra or quagga mussels are asked to immediately call (877) STOP-ANS, a 24-hour, nationwide hotline set up to help stop the spread of the mussels.
Boaters who notice aquatic invasive species are asked to call (866) INVADER or to note their findings on the Web site, oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Both services also provide information on identifying aquatic invasive species.
Boaters who find evidence of zebra or quagga mussels are asked to immediately call (877) STOP-ANS, a 24-hour, nationwide hotline set up to help stop the spread of the mussels.
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Invasive ringed crayfish have been found in the John Day River Basin.
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Invasive zebra mussels have not yet reached Oregon but have been detected in California.
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Millions of dollars were spent ridding Diamond Lake of tui chub in 2006. The non-native fish had overrun and upset the ecological balance of the lake in the Cascade Mountains to the east of Roseburg.
In turn, blooms of blue-green algae cluttered the lake and posed health risks.
But now, federal and state natural resource agencies are trying to raise awareness of what the public can do to make sure similar ecological imbalances don’t recur at the lake and other local rivers and streams.
“It would be a shame to get rid of tui chub and then have (Eurasian water) milfoil or (New Zealand) mudsnails come right back in,” said Randy Henry, the policy coordinator for the Oregon State Marine Board.
What boaters particularly can do to avoid bringing aquatic invasive weeds, shell fish and other organisms into local waters was the focus of a training session Thursday at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife office in Roseburg.
About 10 people, all employees of local state and federal natural resource agencies, attended. The session, however, was open to the public. A similar one is planned for June 18 at Diamond Lake.
Invasive species can range from non-native aquatic weeds and snails to nutria and feral pigs, said Robyn Draheim from Portland State University’s Center for Lakes & Reservoirs.
The damages they inflict can range from harming native plant and animal life to causing restrictions on fishing and swimming to the expenditure of millions of dollars to get rid of them.
Some of the aquatic invasive species in Oregon include New Zealand mudsnails, so tiny they look like pieces of sand or dirt. Thumb-sized snails, called big-ear radix, have been found in Toketee and Hemlock lakes, off Highway 138 East. The ringed crayfish has been detected in the John Day River Basin.
Aquatic plants are some of the most common invasive species in the state. Eurasian watermilfoil inhabits East Lake, near Bend. Brazilian waterweed has been found in lakes near Reedsport. Parrot’s feather fouls other water bodies in the state.
But all in all, the Beaver State has remained “relatively uninvaded,” Draheim said.
In turn, blooms of blue-green algae cluttered the lake and posed health risks.
But now, federal and state natural resource agencies are trying to raise awareness of what the public can do to make sure similar ecological imbalances don’t recur at the lake and other local rivers and streams.
“It would be a shame to get rid of tui chub and then have (Eurasian water) milfoil or (New Zealand) mudsnails come right back in,” said Randy Henry, the policy coordinator for the Oregon State Marine Board.
What boaters particularly can do to avoid bringing aquatic invasive weeds, shell fish and other organisms into local waters was the focus of a training session Thursday at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife office in Roseburg.
About 10 people, all employees of local state and federal natural resource agencies, attended. The session, however, was open to the public. A similar one is planned for June 18 at Diamond Lake.
Invasive species can range from non-native aquatic weeds and snails to nutria and feral pigs, said Robyn Draheim from Portland State University’s Center for Lakes & Reservoirs.
The damages they inflict can range from harming native plant and animal life to causing restrictions on fishing and swimming to the expenditure of millions of dollars to get rid of them.
Some of the aquatic invasive species in Oregon include New Zealand mudsnails, so tiny they look like pieces of sand or dirt. Thumb-sized snails, called big-ear radix, have been found in Toketee and Hemlock lakes, off Highway 138 East. The ringed crayfish has been detected in the John Day River Basin.
Aquatic plants are some of the most common invasive species in the state. Eurasian watermilfoil inhabits East Lake, near Bend. Brazilian waterweed has been found in lakes near Reedsport. Parrot’s feather fouls other water bodies in the state.
But all in all, the Beaver State has remained “relatively uninvaded,” Draheim said.
On the other hand, what she called the “real show stopper” of aquatic invasive species, zebra and quagga mussels are as close as California.
First detected in the Great Lakes in 1988, the mussels proliferated throughout the East Coast before moving to Arizona and California.
The small, gray mussels are notorious for fouling pipes in municipal water plants and power plants and covering submerged boat bottoms and navigation buoys. They harm local native fish and mussels. They coat beaches to the point people walking there cut their feet.
In the eastern United States, $1 billion a year is spent removing them and keeping them at bay. The U.S. Great Lakes power stations spend $100 million a year dealing with the prolific mollusks.
Oregon officials estimate it could cost up to $27 million to rid Columbia River Basin dams of the critters, should they find their way there.
A few of them have tried to hitch a ride through Oregon, the last known attempt on a boat being hauled through in February 2008, said Henry.
In response, the boat, and its owners, got a “red-light (police) escort” to the Washington state border. The incident prompted state officials to develop a better plan to keep them outside the state’s borders.
Part of that plan is to educate boaters on what they can do to help. Locally, officials have acquired a special tool to make that a little bit easier.
At the Thursday training session, natural resource staff were shown how to inspect boats for aquatic invasive species, ranging from weeds and snails to zebra and quagga mussels.
They were shown how to work with boaters whose boats don’t pass inspection. In such cases, the officials will direct the boaters to a portable boat washing station to be set up near Diamond Lake Lodge.
The official will turn on and monitor the machine. The official will direct boaters on how to decontaminate their boats. The machine uses a pressure washer to spray hot water on boats, similar to what you might see at a car wash.
Henry and other officials hope their agencies’ educational efforts will seep into how boaters care for their boats on their own.
“If you clean your boat and drain it and then let it dry” after taking it out of the water, “you’ll take care of 99 percent of the (aquatic) invasive species,” Henry said.
• You can reach reporter Kathy Korengel at 957-4218 or by e-mail at kkorengel@nrtoday.com.
First detected in the Great Lakes in 1988, the mussels proliferated throughout the East Coast before moving to Arizona and California.
The small, gray mussels are notorious for fouling pipes in municipal water plants and power plants and covering submerged boat bottoms and navigation buoys. They harm local native fish and mussels. They coat beaches to the point people walking there cut their feet.
In the eastern United States, $1 billion a year is spent removing them and keeping them at bay. The U.S. Great Lakes power stations spend $100 million a year dealing with the prolific mollusks.
Oregon officials estimate it could cost up to $27 million to rid Columbia River Basin dams of the critters, should they find their way there.
A few of them have tried to hitch a ride through Oregon, the last known attempt on a boat being hauled through in February 2008, said Henry.
In response, the boat, and its owners, got a “red-light (police) escort” to the Washington state border. The incident prompted state officials to develop a better plan to keep them outside the state’s borders.
Part of that plan is to educate boaters on what they can do to help. Locally, officials have acquired a special tool to make that a little bit easier.
At the Thursday training session, natural resource staff were shown how to inspect boats for aquatic invasive species, ranging from weeds and snails to zebra and quagga mussels.
They were shown how to work with boaters whose boats don’t pass inspection. In such cases, the officials will direct the boaters to a portable boat washing station to be set up near Diamond Lake Lodge.
The official will turn on and monitor the machine. The official will direct boaters on how to decontaminate their boats. The machine uses a pressure washer to spray hot water on boats, similar to what you might see at a car wash.
Henry and other officials hope their agencies’ educational efforts will seep into how boaters care for their boats on their own.
“If you clean your boat and drain it and then let it dry” after taking it out of the water, “you’ll take care of 99 percent of the (aquatic) invasive species,” Henry said.
• You can reach reporter Kathy Korengel at 957-4218 or by e-mail at kkorengel@nrtoday.com.
