A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
August 27, 2007
1. Top Items
Mussels new to
Discovery of destructive mollusks in Inland lakes raises concern - Riverside Press Enterprise
Quaggas found in Skinner, Mathews - Riverside Press Enterprise
Foreign Mussels Show Up In Local Water - KGTV
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Mussels new to
By Terry Rogers, staff writer
A larval form of the same species of mollusk, known as quagga mussels, also was discovered this week in San Vicente Reservoir near Lakeside, where drinking water is stored for the city of
In January, quagga mussels were found in Lake Mead, which straddles
The unwelcome mussels mean water agencies will have to spend more on maintenance, said Jim Barrett, director of the San Diego Water Department. Divers will have to regularly check intake pipes and screens at reservoirs.
“It will be a continuing nuisance,” Barrett said.
But no extreme or extraordinarily costly remedies are being contemplated.
“We're certainly not going to drain our reservoirs to kill these critters,” Barrett said.
Experts believe the mussels entered the
“The entire West is facing this situation, and everyone is very concerned,” said Ric DeLeon, a microbiologist for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
Aside from clogging pumps and pipes, the mussels can alter lake ecosystems by consuming vast amounts of phytoplankton, the same food required by juvenile fish. The corresponding reduction of algae increases sunlight and promotes the growth of noxious aquatic weeds.
The infestation means recreational boaters will be subject to more frequent inspections to ensure that their vessels or motors aren't carrying the mussel or its larvae.
Some water agencies that had allowed private boats on their lakes and reservoirs may now ban them. Boating is off-limits at
The positive identification of the quaggas at
“Once it is present in a large water body, it is virtually impossible to completely eradicate,” said Alexia Retallack, spokeswoman for the California Fish and Game Department. “The big thing now is to prevent it from spreading.”
An estimated 160 lakes and reservoirs statewide are considered at risk for infestation by the mussel, she said.
“Any river, tributary, creek, reservoir, lake or pond that is fed by untreated or raw
The department has even trained one of its enforcement dogs how to sniff vessels for the presence of the mussels.
Educational materials are being distributed to the boating community advising them to wash their vessels and flush water from their bilges and motors before entering a water body.
“Boaters are our first line of defense against spreading quagga to the rest of the state,” Retallack said. #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20070825-9999-1mi25mussels.html
Discovery of destructive mollusks in Inland lakes raises concern
Riverside Press
By Jennifer Bowles, staff writer
A tiny but destructive mollusk found in two Inland lakes raises fears of a potential costly environmental catastrophe for the drinking supply for 18 million
Despite efforts to stop the quagga mussels' march westward since they were discovered in January along the Colorado River, divers found about 40 adult quaggas earlier this month in
None has been discovered in
The mussels don't pose a health threat in drinking water but can create a taste and odor problem if left unchecked, De
In the Great Lakes region, quaggas from the
"It's going to be a mess," said Randy Record, of
MWD will use chlorine at the two Inland lakes in an attempt to prevent further infestation. At
"Fortunately, it doesn't take much chlorine to kill the larvae," De
He said it's not known how the quaggas got to the two Inland lakes. They can spread two ways: through the Colorado River Aqueduct system that's connected to
There is no recreation at
Quaggas were first found in Lake Mead along the
The sighting of the mussels in the West at
"It you think about how much infrastructure
She said inspections of boats will continue at state agricultural checkpoints, including the one at Yermo, near
"It eventually could cost the state billions and we're asking the public to help hold that line," Retallack said. #
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_C_quaggas25.3f75b79.html
Quaggas found in Skinner, Mathews
Riverside Press
By Jennifer Bowles, staff writer
A tiny but destructive mollusk has been found in two Inland reservoirs for the first time, confirming fears that the quagga mussel, found last January along the
Despite efforts to stop the mussels' march westward, about 40 adult quaggas were found earlier this month in
MWD is responsible for the drinking supply for 18 million
No mussels have been discovered so far in
Quaggas, if they aren't controlled, can eventually cause taste and odor problems with the water supply, De
"It's going to be a mess," said Randy Record, of
The quaggas, in this case, can spread two ways: through the Colorado River Aqueduct system, which is connected to
There is no recreation at
"Fortunately, it doesn't take much chlorine to kill the larvae," said De
Quaggas were first found in Lake Mead along the
Inspections of boats will continue at agricultural stops, including the one at Yermo near
"If we can encourage the public to clean their boats and if they get stopped for inspection understand it's there to protect the economy, the environment and their recreation," she said. "It eventually could cost the state billions and we're asking the public to hold that line." #
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_webquagga.255d3e2.html
Foreign Mussels Show Up In Local Water
KGTV
Quagga mussels are now established in San Vicente Reservoir, one of
Native wildlife and important, costly water delivery systems are both at risk as a result, officials said.
The finding in a lake northeast of El Cajon means two attempts to flush the Colorado River Aqueduct and kill the quagga mussels have failed to halt its spread, and that the mussels have made it downstream at least to the San Diego branch of the aqueduct, and likely into the Los Angeles branch as well.
"The entire West is facing this situation, and everyone is very concerned," said Metropolitan Water District microbiologist Ric DeLeon in
The offending bivalves are native to the rivers of
In the last two decades, they have spread into the
Officials think someone with a recreational boat unintentionally carried quagga-laden water into
Engineers twice drained the Southern California Aqueduct to chlorinate it to remove its quagga infestation this year.
State biologists now worry that the quaggas can be spread into the Sacramento River delta by an unwitting boater who, for example, drains a water cooler filled with
At one point this year, people towing boats from
"Once it is present in a large water body, it is virtually impossible to completely eradicate," said state Fish and Game Department spokeswoman Alexia Retallack. She said all water bodies receiving water from the
The mussel threatens native fish with a voracious appetite that sucks all the nutrients out of a river through the mussel's filtering abilities. And public water utilities will have to cope with a pest that can line pipes and valves, requiring costly periodic maintenance.
http://www.10news.com/news/13974621/detail.html
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