Invasive species question

[HATH]

Let me make sure I understand this correctly, if you have boated on a non-mussel lake, there's no need for decon, right? I ask because I'm going to be on UL lake quite a bit here in the next month and right after that hitting up powell, there won't be time to use the drying method between trips, no problem right? As for when I come back from powell decon is a must! Let me know if my thinking is incorrect.
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[PBH]

[quote HATH]Let me make sure I understand this correctly, if you have boated on a non-mussel lake, there's no need for decon, right? I ask because I'm going to be on UL lake quite a bit here in the next month and right after that hitting up powell, there won't be time to use the drying method between trips, no problem right? [/quote]

Not necessarily. Just because UL currently isn't listed doesn't mean that you won't be asked to have your boat cleaned when you pull up to the inspector at Powell.

It really shouldn't matter where you are boating. Proper cleaning should happen no matter. Clean, drain, dry. Or professional cleaning.
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[DREW22]

Why are they making you clean your boat before launching at Powell? It is already infested. Shouldn't they be spending ALL their time and money on cleaning boats when leaving Lake Powell? The general confusion of all of this isn't helping the state stop the spread of aquatic hitchhikers. Its only a matter of time until every lake in Utah is infected. I would bet flaming gorge and UT lake are next.
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[PBH]

[quote DREW22]Why are they making you clean your boat before launching at Powell?[/quote]

To prevent invasive mussels from being introduced to Lake Powell.


[quote DREW22]It is already infested. Shouldn't they be spending ALL their time and money on cleaning boats when leaving Lake Powell? [/quote]

well...has the NPS admitted to their problem yet? The other issue is funding. What is the funding for the prevention of mussels specified for? I'm guessing it is earmarked for "prevention". So, can that money be spent on "containment"? I don't know. I imagine that because the NPS is a Federal Gov't agency that there are some stipulations, and changing that may take some time. I don't know -- I'm only thinking out loud.


[quote DREW22]
The general confusion of all of this isn't helping the state stop the spread of aquatic hitchhikers. [/quote]

The State of Utah has made it clear that you MUST clean, drain, and dry your boat. Period. How is that confusing? You should be doing this after every use no matter if the body of water is currently listed as infested or not. Further, if the mandatory drying time period cannot be met, then you should contact the DWR and inquire about a professional cleaning. They will do this free of charge. Confusing? I don't understand how it is confusing. Clean. Drain. Dry.
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[fishnutts]

PBH
Maybe you need to read the decontamination form a little closer[frown]. I agree we should all be decontaminating, but what you are saying and what DNR is requiring is 2 different things. = confusion.[]

You must complete and sign this form before launching your boat In the past 30 days, has your boat been used in any of the areas affected by zebra and quagga mussels listed below?
[#00ff00]If you answered No to the above question, then simply sign this form, put the bottom portion in your launch vehicle and launch your boat![/#00ff00] If you answered Yes to any part of the question, you must decontami- nate your boat using one of the methods below:
Keep the top portion in your boat.
Utah: Electric Lake, Lake Powell, Red Fleet Reservoir and Sand Hollow Reservoir Colorado, California, Nevada, New Mexico or Arizona Waters in states east of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico Canada: Waters in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec Mexico Other: Waters established by the Wildlife Board in rule R657-60 and published on the DWR website at wildlife.utah.gov/rules.
• • • • • •
Agent signatureDecontamination agency Date
Professional decontamination Seal # _____________ See the front of this form for help locating the nearest professional decontamination unit. B
A Self-decontamination process See the front of this form for details.
Please take our online survey about your experi- ence with the Aquatic Invasive Species program at Wildlife.Utah.Gov/MusselSurvey
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[mojorizing]

Brett, they did admit to it a while back, and to Drew22, you really need to ask that question? Even if a body of water is infected, you really want to compound it by not making sure it's clean?
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[PBH]

Fishnuts -- I have read it. I understand it.

[quote UDWR]
If you answered Yes to any part of the question, you must decontami- nate your boat using one of the methods below: [/quote]

followed by:
[quote UDWR]
B. A Self-decontamination process See the front of this form for details.[/quote]

Self decontamination = clean, drain, dry.

confusion? Only for those who cannot read.

mojo -- yes, I understand that the NPS has finally admitted to being infested. So now they need to (quickly) update their program. They should have had a contingency plan in place already. Instead of denying, fighting, and ignoring the problem last year, they should have been making arrangements to transition from "prevention" to "containment". I have no idea what they are currently doing -- maybe they don't either? It's not good.

I think we can all expect to see Utah doing more inspections on the highway once boaters leave the NRA.
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[fishnutts]

Well I guess highlighting things in green for you, didn't help you read any better either[frown] nobody was talking about the yes part of the question.
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[PBH]

fishnuts -- if you answered "no", then you've already observed the mandatory drying period! Launch your boat.


I still don't understand your confusion. Clean, drain, dry your boat. If you do those things, you shouldn't have a problem launching anywhere.
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[fishnutts]

Really, ok PBH you win

if you interpret this:
[#40ff40]You must complete and sign this form before launching your boat in the past 30 days, [#ff0000]has your boat been used in any of the areas affected by zebra and quagga mussels listed below? [/#ff0000][/#40ff40][#00ff00]If you answered No to the above question, then simply sign this form, put the bottom portion in your launch vehicle and launch your boat![/#00ff00]

as the same as this:

fishnuts -- if you answered "no", then [#80ff00]you've already observed the mandatory drying period![/#80ff00] Launch your boat.

Then all I can say is , glad your not doing my taxes for me.
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[flygoddess]

The way I read it is even with the NO answer they do require you to clean, and dry your boat for any body of water.
But, they want to know on top the cleaning you need to do all the time, if you have visited a contaminated body of water.
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[fishnutts]

ok , I can appreciate that is the way you read it, but is that what it says? what if I use my boat the day before, on a different lake(which is not infected by invasive species) I want to fish this new lake, not enough time for me to self decontaminate the boat. (This is not a far fetched scenario). Am I legal to launch according to this statement?

[#00ff00][/#00ff00][#ff4040][/#ff4040]"You must complete and sign this form before launching your boat In the past 30 days, has your boat been used in any of the areas affected by zebra and quagga mussels listed below?
If you answered No to the above question, then simply sign this form, put the bottom portion in your launch vehicle and launch your boat!"

That is what Hath's original question was referring to (fishing Utah lake and then heading to Powell), I have done the same thing, fished Willard and headed down to Powell a few days later, no time to self decontaminate the boat, the Inspector at Powell ramp asked me were the boat has been in the last two weeks , I said I had fished Willard a couple of days ago, and he waved me through, I have experienced the same thing for the Gorge Inspection's and other Utah Lakes, and I am sure the fishermen and women that frequent this site, fish a lake one day and another the next, is not an uncommon occurrence, ultimately it is up to the Inspector wether he believes you are telling the truth or not, and decides to send you to get the professional decontaminatin, and if there is no inspector present? and you want go fishing tomorrow PBH or flygoddess, knowing you fished a lake today that was not infected with invasive species, and you could not self decontaminate your boat or pontoon for the required time, how are you going to interpret the above paragraph?
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[wiperhunter2]

IMO, what you are saying is exactly what the law states, you only need to do the professional decontamination or drying period if you were in a contaminated lake. It is not required if the lake you are in or going to is not contaminated, you just need to do the online test or sign one of those forms. That is the whole purpose of having that form and the online test. IMO at lakes like Powell that have been confirmed or even lakes that have tested positive, there should be a crew there 24/7 to decontaminate boats when they come out of the lake, no matter when you leave the lake. The small cost of having that crew there 24/7 is nothing compared what it will cost if they spread to other lakes.
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[dtayboyz]

What? I thought it was a conspiracy to mess with my fishing time. What the hell is in them cemtrails? Fire truck!

Seriously, been in 5 states and never spent more than five minutes getting inspected. Educate and keep it clean. Never thought about lures until someone brought it up here. Thanx for the discussion.
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[cpierce]

The problem is that you never know for sure if the lake you have been in is infected. There will always be a lag period before mussels are spotted or confirmed in a lake. During that time how many other lakes will be contaminated by people that think they are okay to not clean and dry just because the gov hasn't said that lake was infected?

Even if you don't feel you are REQUIRED to decontaminate your boat by the law, please, as responsible adults "Clean, Drain, and Dry" before moving to another body of water.
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[wiperhunter2]

I think we all understand that concern but the question was, is it against the law to launch a boat from one uninfected lake to another without going through the drying period or having your boat cleaned with 140* water to kill the mussels, I say it is legal, at least until the state puts one of these pressure washers at every lake in the state and just to be realistic, do you think that will ever happen? It is just crazy to say we can't go fishing from a boat because we did not wait for the drying time or because there is no pressure washer at the lake you want to fish[crazy]. Sure, this is not a big deal for those that only take their boat out once a month but what exactly are people suppose to do, that use their boats several times a week?
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[PBH]

This is not a hard or confusing thing. You boat on lake A on day 1. You want to boat on lake B on day 2. As a responsible boat owner what should you do?

A. self-cert decontamination -- however, the mandatory drying period is not sufficient.

B. contact DWR and have them professional decontaminate your boat with scalding water.

If you cannot meet the two above, than as a responsible boat owner you should not launch your boat!

This is NOT the State's fault! This is the fault of irresponsible boat owners. As a boat owner myself, I take great pride in cleaning my boat and assuring that I am not moving invasive species from one body of water to another. I strive to observe the mandatory drying period. I also strive to clean my boat very thoroughly. Further, I open hatches to allow air flow into the bilge / hull. I leave the plug out any time the boat is out of the water. I raise my jack so that the boat is tilted towards the back while in storage.

If I want to boat again prior to the mandatory drying period I call the DWR and let them know that I need a cleaning, and they arrange with me to get it done.

It is up to US to assure we do not contaminate all of Utah's lakes and reservoirs -- NOT the State!

Do YOUR part.

clean, drain, dry. Get used to it.
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[cpierce]

I know that you were discussing what was legal, but gov and laws are not going to solve this for us. We are the ones on the waters, and we have to care enough to be proactive ourselves.

If you are returning to the same waters, no real problem, but we all like to be free to go where the fishing is better! So, without a cleaning station close to you, that's a hard question to answer. It is a PITA, but I would hope that people will do their best to not spread the stuff.

I think at least a good cleaning with a brush and draining can be of help. Remember not to drain or clean where water will flow to a storm drain. Then since I have a smaller 12' boat I would use a metal garden sprayer with heated water. With a larger boat, two metal sprayers...one warming on the Cache Cooker will spraying with the other.

If you can't heat your own water to clean with, salt water-- 1/2 c salt to 1 gal water-- is also effective. Rinse well to get it off of your equipment. Hard on plants too!

With waders and float tubes I run into the same problem. My solution is either one of the above rinses or to use multiple sets of waders etc.

This boat cleaning guide book pfd file put out by Calif. Has some good info in it. It pinpoints many of the areas on your equipment to focus on. P18 does go over some alternative cleaning solutions.

https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=4957

In case the direct link doesn't work, it is from: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/invasives/quaggamussel/
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[wiperhunter2]

In an ideal world what your saying is true and I really think this is a great discussion for us all but.......even if we all, that read your post, comply with what needs to be done, there are many hundreds, if not thousands of people that are just reading what the laws says and have no clue that this is a problem. The state needs to get on the stick, if they are serious and change the law to reflect what you are saying or this just will not work.
To test your theory about contacting the DWR to make arrangements to get a boat cleaned, I'll contact my local office next week, just to see how hard or easy it is to set up an appointment to get a boat cleaned. If nothing else it will be interesting to see what the DWR has to say on this issue[:/].
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[PBH]

[quote wiperhunter2]
To test your theory about contacting the DWR to make arrangements to get a boat cleaned, I'll contact my local office next week, just to see how hard or easy it is to set up an appointment to get a boat cleaned. If nothing else it will be interesting to see what the DWR has to say on this issue[:/].[/quote]

just in case you need it:
http://wildlife.utah.gov/decontaminate/6...units.html
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