Most folks agree that Clear Lake is at very high risk for invasive mussel introduction from boats.
There are some people who believe that while we wait for consensus on what to do; we are also waiting for mussels.
One of the questions recently debated is whether boater education can adequately protect the lake. I”ve mentioned before about the weak federal and state programs to prevent mussel movement and if you heard the California Fish and Game presentation at the Board of Supervisors meeting you might now be getting nervous with me. To be fair, they are all trying their best in a tough state to govern and there are not many low-cost options. So what is the main weakness in these programs?
There is an example to visit that might help. From the beginning of programs to control mussel invasion into this country, the focal effort was with boater education. Education is a good, strong component of any popular movement and certainly much needed to change opinions. But, the very strong education program designed to keep mussels contained in the Great Lakes was not enough to protect more than 250 eastern lakes infested from this slow-moving biological fire storm.
We saw how well the even stronger “100th meridian” education program to prevent spread into the west (e.g. Lake Mead) worked. It didn”t and why not? In a nutshell, there was no requirement to read all that information or even listen to the message. If boaters thought that a certain knowledge level was required to launch their boat, it might have been a different ball game.
Of course, the best requirement before launching in a lake is to demonstrate a clean, drained, dry boat before launch. Miss this required test and go home, like failing a driving test. But, it”s the inspector who knows what a high-risk boat is and not the boater. Our resident situation requires a mini-inspection, but it doesn”t happen.
For example, we have more than 6,000 resident boaters who sign a promise to screen their boats if they leave Lake County, but they return without doing so.
Perhaps they know if their boat is high-risk, is it? Just one of those boats could bio-change our Lake County economy to a pre-bass, pre-bird watching level. So a minimum option would be to require an operator”s test so that boaters know what to do. Maybe those visiting boaters who want to go and come back on a month”s sticker should pass one too. If we trust boaters to do what”s important to protect the lake, let”s make sure they know the proper protocol.
What about returning from neighboring lakes? Unfortunately no water body is safe; they may be infected for a couple of years before discovery, so the protocol should be followed. That includes going to another lake from here, our lake has a few things that shouldn”t be shared. The economic consequences of failing these measures should also be known. This trophy lake provides the main engine for the economy and property values of 64,000 citizens. It only takes one person out of 6,000 with a sprinkling of wrong ideas to change things for all of us, including non-boaters. Because 21st century threats are different from ever before and the boater responsibilities higher, we need a different approach that will make boaters want to learn. Study and test material could be online, by mail, provided by clubs or let your imagination go. We could include our county”s very close neighbors who boat only here.
While it won”t be popular, it”s better than quarantining the lake or inspecting every returning boat and is a low cost option.
Jim Steele is a Retired Cal Fish and Game scientist, registered professional forester, part-time consultant and a full-time Lake County resident-volunteer.
