No invasive mussel species were found in Saskatchewan lakes in 2018 (Submitted photo/Government of Saskatchewan)

By Michael Joel-Hansen

Invasive Species

No invasive mussels found in province’s lakes in 2018

Mar 18, 2019 | 2:40 PM

It was a good year when it came to controlling the spread of some invasive species in Saskatchewan in 2018.

On Monday, the Government of Saskatchewan announced that no invasive mussel species were found in any of the province’s lakes or water bodies during the year. During this time the Ministry of Environment tested for species like zebra and quagga mussels.

Ron Hlasny, a senior aquatic biologist with the provincial government told paNOW there were extensive efforts undertaken to make sure invasive species were not present.

“In this year 121 waters were done throughout the province and we sort of look at the 11 major watersheds, we try to sample upstream and downstream,” he said.

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In 2018, over 2,000 water craft were inspected, while over 800 had to undergo a detailed inspection. Meanwhile 50 watercraft underwent decontamination, while five were found to be contaminated and had to be quarantined.

As part of the government’s efforts, staff go about collecting water samples which are tested for larva, they also collect samples for environmental DNA sampling. Hlasny explained efforts are made to keep an eye of certain bodies of water, given who is known to use them.

“We also look at very high use lakes, or high risk lakes we would call them and these are lakes where we do know that people from out of province travel to,” he said.

The provincial government uses two labs to test samples from the lakes, the environmental DNA sampling is done at the University of Saskatchewan, while the ones tested for larva are sent to a lab in Ontario.

When looking at why Saskatchewan has been successful so far in keeping invasive mussels out of it’s waters, Hlasny credits cooperation between a variety of groups.

“A few years back we created an invasive species task force, aquatic invasive species task force and there’s a lot of players, there’s SUMA, SARM … Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation, water shed association,” he said.

Along with these organizations, Hlasny as well credited crown corporations like SaskPower and SaskWater along with Meewasin Valley Authority in Saskatoon for helping to get the word out to even more people.

“I think that’s been the most important part, because it allows us to hit many different lines of communication within the province,” he said.

As the temperatures warm up and people get ready to bring their boats out, Hlasny said people need to remember to take plugs out and drain water from their boats, which is a regulation and making sure to dry off the boat after getting it off the water.

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MichaelJoel.Hansen@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @mjhskcdn