(Okoboji)– Officials say stepped-up efforts this past summer to prevent aquatic invasive species from infesting the Iowa Great Lakes were a big success, but there was atleast one close call.
Thanks to the Iowa Great Lakes Water Safety Council and some additional contributions it solicited, three additional officers were hired to supplement the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Lake Patrol officers, increasing the staffing from eight to 11 this past summer. That allowed for a regular staffing of officers at various boat ramps to educate boaters and inspect boats and trailers.
Even then Phil Petersen of the Iowa Great Lakes Water Safety Council says there was a close call. Petersen says a boat from Wisconsin was being serviced at a lakes area marina when a mechanic noticed a cluster of zebra mussels in the engine compartment. Petersen says the boat was decontaminated and none of the organisms made it into the Iowa Great Lakes.
Petersen says the incident points out the importance of public education and how everyone needs to be on the lookout.
Eurasian Watermilfoil has been found as close to the Iowa Great Lakes as Crystal Lake in Hancock county and St. Benedict’s Pond in Kossuth county. Zebra mussels are as close as Clear Lake.
