Protect BC Waters from Aquatic Hitchhikers

Clean Drain Dry

Clean. Drain. Dry.

Principles:

  1. CLEAN off all plant parts, animals, and mud from boat and equipment (e.g. boots, waders, fishing gear). Use power wash station if available.
  2. DRAIN onto land all items that can hold water (e.g. buckets, wells, bilge, and ballast)
  3. DRY all items completely before launching into another body of water.

Invaders Are on the Move: Across North America, aquatic invaders are turning up in freshwater ecosystems. Zebra mussels and quagga mussels are becoming an extremely real threat due to their ease of movement and rapid rate of reproduction.

Thankfully, BC is still mussel free! The BC Government is making prevention and early detection a high priority. There are now 10 boat inspection stations across BC and even a mussel-sniffing dog to be used at one of the stations. The dog can help search boats for mussels that might otherwise be undetected and carried to new waterways.