How Did Mussels Sneak Into California?

[WB Staff]

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Unstoppable Invasion: How Did Mussels Sneak Into California, Despite Decades of State Shipping Rules?
By Alastair Bland • CalMatters,


An aerial view of the Port of Stockton. An invasive species of mussel from Asia has been found near the port and in several other locations in the San Joaquin Valley. The mussels were likely discharged in ships’ ballast water. (Photo by Fred Greaves/For CalMatters)
After the recent discovery of a destructive mussel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, some experts say California officials have failed to effectively enforce laws designed to protect waterways from invaders carried in ships’ ballast water.

A state law enacted 20 years ago has required California officials to inspect 25% of incoming ships and sample their ballast water before it’s discharged into waterways. But the tests didn’t begin until two years ago — after standards for conducting them were finally set — and testing remains rare. State officials have sampled the ballast water of only 16 vessels of the roughly 3,000 likely to have emptied their tanks nearshore.

Experts say stronger regulations are needed, as well as better enforcement.

“It’s not really a surprise that another invasive species showed up in the Delta,” said Karrigan Börk, a law professor and the interim director of the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences. “It’s likely to continue happening.”

Native to eastern Asia, the mussels — detected near the Port of Stockton, in a small San Joaquin Valley reservoir and several other Delta locations — were the first to be detected in North America. If the mollusc evades eradication efforts, it could spread over vast areas of California and beyond, crowd out native species and clog parts of the massive projects that export Delta water to cities and farms.

Invasive golden mussels, shown at a California Department of Water Resources lab, might crowd out native species in waterways and clog parts of the state’s massive water projects. (Photo by Xavier Mascareñas/California Department of Water Resources)
Ted Lempert, a former Bay Area Assemblymember who authored a 1999 state law aimed at preventing ships from bringing invasive species into California, said state officials “apparently took their eyes off the ball.”

“We were trying to get ahead of the game, so I’m really frustrated that after all these years some of the events we were trying to prevent have come to pass,” he said.

But the prospect of an invasive species colonizing a new region frequented by ships “is a numbers game” that can happen even under the most rigorous regulations and enforcement, said Greg Ruiz, a marine ecologist with the Marine Invasions Research Laboratory at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. “This is not a failure in the system,” he said.

More Info: https://www.newsbreak.com/news/36974439 ... ping-rules

[ash]

So the state had 20 years to enact a program for commercial inspection, failed to do so but quickly put restrictions on recreational boaters access the public waters. Also too they didnt "sneak in" they hitchhiked and the entity responsible for monitoring hitchhikers didnt catch them.

[AVG.JOE]

Sounds like there goin to eradicate by spraying/poisoning our delta even more! They regulate everything here , why can’t they regulate where regulating is clearly needed?

[monte300]

So the state had 20 years to enact a program for commercial inspection, failed to do so but quickly put restrictions on recreational boaters access the public waters. Also too they didnt "sneak in" they hitchhiked and the entity responsible for monitoring hitchhikers didnt catch them.

Well said, Ash

[stickbait]

So the state had 20 years to enact a program for commercial inspection, failed to do so but quickly put restrictions on recreational boaters access the public waters. Also too they didnt "sneak in" they hitchhiked and the entity responsible for monitoring hitchhikers didnt catch them.

What ya think is going to happen with boaters/boating in the delta... they are closing lakes.. but the delta is the start of the whole problem...

[Mark-C]

So the state had 20 years to enact a program for commercial inspection, failed to do so but quickly put restrictions on recreational boaters access the public waters. Also too they didnt "sneak in" they hitchhiked and the entity responsible for monitoring hitchhikers didnt catch them.

Because they usually react to a problem after its too late instead of proactively doing something in the first place. People have been talking about the ballast water for so long now.

[monte300]

So the state had 20 years to enact a program for commercial inspection, failed to do so but quickly put restrictions on recreational boaters access the public waters. Also too they didnt "sneak in" they hitchhiked and the entity responsible for monitoring hitchhikers didnt catch them.

What ya think is going to happen with boaters/boating in the delta... they are closing lakes.. but the delta is the start of the whole problem...

Hopefully they don’t close delta. I store my boat there and I only fish the delta.

[JVGondal]

They won’t close the delta

[stickbait]

They won’t close the delta

to big to close and way to many boats out there...but I wonder if you are going to have your boats inspected or quarantined... or are they just going to let people transport these mussels on their boats from the delta and hope to stop them at the lakes... lots of lakes in this state !

This is a crazy deal.

[El Jefe]

If they (larve)are microscopic, how in the hell are they going to keep them out of the Delta Medota and the California Aqueduct??? San Luis??? What about going upstream, can the dams keep them out of the lakes?

Our Fish and Game is a joke, Dumbocrats have ruined this state.

[JVGondal]

If they (larve)are microscopic, how in the hell are they going to keep them out of the Delta Medota and the California Aqueduct??? San Luis??? What about going upstream, can the dams keep them out of the lakes?

Our Fish and Game is a joke, Dumbocrats have ruined this state.

Exactly! Because waterfowl does not migrate anymore? Climate change