Lake Powell guards against mussels

PAGE, Ariz. — The fact that zebra mussels were found in Lake Mead in January, a slow time of the year, has enabled park officials and biologists to set up a defense against the infestation of Lake Powell.

Fee stations are now open, which has made it possible for park staff to begin questioning boaters planning to launch in Lake Powell.

If a boat has been in an infested area, which includes Lake Mead and impoundments downstream, the Mississippi drainage or the Great Lake, within 30 days, boat owners are required to:

• Report that the boat has been washed and dried and left for a specified period, which is 30 days, or

• Agree to have the boat washed in scalding-hot water.

"It's important that we do whatever is necessary to prevent zebra mussels from getting into Lake Powell," said Wayne Gustaveson, biologist for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.

"Washing facilities are now set up at the various marinas around the lake, and there should be some private facilities open soon." To expedite their passage to launching facilities on the lake, owners can go to the park's Web site or to www.wayneswords.com and print out a certificate that owners can fill out and present stating that they have met the requirements.

"If the boat has not been in infested waters within the 30-day period, then the owner will be able to launch without going through the wash," he added.

"Or, they can simply answer the questions and indicate that the boat has not been in infected waters within the 30 days."

Thus far, he said, boaters have been very cooperative.

"I'm a firm believer in human nature. Lake Powell is such a great place I don't think anyone would knowingly bring in zebra mussels. Unknowingly, I think they might. That's why we're trying to educate people, to make them aware of the problem and just how detrimental mussels can be to the lake," he added.

"I've done a lot of research and I still have not found anything good about the mussels. Some believe it's inevitable that they get in Lake Powell, but I don't think so. I think there's a good chance, with the cooperation of boaters, we can keep them out."

The mussels originally came from Europe with large oceangoing vessels headed for the Great Lakes region. They were first detected in the Great Lakes 18 years ago. A subspecies of the zebra, the quagga, which were the ones found in Mead, were discovered within the past 10 years. The quagga are more of a threat because they can live at greater depths, can attach to a wider range of substrate and are more prolific. The quagga is often described as a zebra on steroids.

Once in a water, a quagga can produce upward of 30,000 eggs with each spawn and can spawn several times a year.