# BioAnswer to Zebra and Quagga Mussels Looks Promising



## klbzdad (Apr 3, 2012)

Stumbled upon this.....looks promising and the envirocrazy in California seem to approve as well. Wonder if the division could use this stuff while spraying off boats to help kill what might already be in a body of water.

http://www.startribune.com/science/247930691.html

Zequanox Website

I've put off buying a boat because of these things. Time to go shopping?


----------



## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Everyone keeps blaming boats... what about waterfowl that fly from lake to lake. I can think of all kinds of ways these might be transmitted. Ever take a fish home uncleaned? Do we spray down duck hunting waders? Sterilize that fishing bobber that has water in it? 

The ways it can spread are endless... so finding a reliable and safe means to control it is pretty cool.


-DallanC


----------



## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

Lets hope it works well in the long term. Bacterial controls sometimes reach an equilibrium point with their hosts/targets and yield diminishing returns.

I'm partial to this mode of biological control instead.

http://www.bigfishtackle.com/forum/..._view=forum_view_collapsed;page=unread#unread


----------



## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

DallanC said:


> Do we spray down duck hunting waders? Sterilize that fishing bobber that has water in it?
> 
> -DallanC


If you don't, you should!

It truly is a boat / transportation issue. Mussels were transported from the Black Sea to the Great Lakes in the U.S. by boat. That's how they got here. They have slowly moved their way west by boat. Boats are the major transportation mode for mussels. Controlling the boats transporting these mussels is the best way to keep our waters clean of them.

Unfortunately, that's not an easy task. The best way to prevent mussels is to eliminate boats on individual waters. That's already happening in some areas. Gunlock, for example, only allows boats during months that an inspection agent is present to check watercraft. This means that about 4 months out of the year, no boats on the lake. That's the first step to prevention. A new reservoir is in the plans in Washington County. Rumor has it that motorized watercraft will NOT be allowed on this reservoir. That's the next step to prevention.

The monetary expenses associated with waters with mussel infestations are alarming. I've already heard that the Glen Canyon Dam Power generation plant will need between 2 and 7 million dollars annually to deal with mussels. Who do you think will pay that money?

As soon as smaller irrigation companies realize how serious this threat is to their investment in an irrigation impoundment (ie: New Castle Reservoir, Otter Creek Reservoir, Yuba Reservoir...), what measures will they take to protect that investment?

Consider what happens if a place like New Castle gets infested. It isn't just the reservoir that is affected. It's the farmer who's alfalfa sprinkler pipes suddenly stop spraying water because they are clogged with mussel shells. Anyone want to wager whether or not IPP is keeping tabs on the situation at Powell? What will they do to protect their water investments???

What about that $2.4 billion pipeline from Powell to Washington County? It just got more expensive!!

Who will pay for all of this? YOU and ME.

If you aren't cleaning your waders, your boat, your anchor ropes....YOU SHOULD!!


----------



## lifes short (Sep 11, 2013)

not real promising
http://www.wayneswords.com/index.php?option=com_kunena&Itemid=27&func=view&catid=5&id=73972
read what Wayne says he knows as much as anyone in Utah


----------



## Catherder (Aug 2, 2008)

lifes short said:


> not real promising
> http://www.wayneswords.com/index.php?option=com_kunena&Itemid=27&func=view&catid=5&id=73972
> read what Wayne says he knows as much as anyone in Utah


Ugh, I'd say. Sounds like it only works in pipes and small areas, not a huge lake like Powell.

Like I said above, bring on the redears/shellcrackers. Lets get the EIS going to get shellcrackers in there before the mussel population grows exponentially, not after.


----------



## klbzdad (Apr 3, 2012)

Soooo, don't buy the boat?


----------



## fishreaper (Jan 2, 2014)

Redears are fun and easy to catch, and they make great bait for trotlines and jug-lines. What other predatory bottomfeeders are present in these lakes? Carp generally eat plant life I believe, and catfish are typically the vulchers and coup de grace's of the sea. These red-ears would take up the attack on crustaceans while providing fine bait and prey fish for the larger predators. 
Just a thought, nothing a nightcrawler on a small hook can't haul in for you. just lop it off the dock with a weight and you're good to go.


----------



## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

klbzdad said:


> Soooo, don't buy the boat?


buy it. I did.


----------

