Signaling a get-tough attitude toward a threat to Minnesota lakes, Wright County has become the first county in the state to require boats, trailers, docks and other equipment to be inspected for aquatic invasive species (AIS).
The mandatory inspections apply to only four lakes in the county, but they may signal the beginning of an era when Minnesota boaters can expect greater scrutiny of their watercraft hygiene.
While only about 5 percent of the state's lakes are infested with species such as zebra mussels, Eurasian milfoil and starry stonewort, experts say that once the invaders arrive in a lake, they're difficult if not impossible to eradicate. That has state and local officials emphasizing prevention through equipment inspections and decontamination to make sure that boaters don't spread the invaders from lake to lake.
The state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is keenly interested in Wright County's effort, said Heidi Wolf, supervisor of the agency's Invasive Species Program. The DNR must sign off on an official delegation of authority to the county before the program gets underway, but county officials said they expect that to happen by the end of July.
"We definitely support counties and local governments and tribes being part of the AIS solution," Wolf said Thursday. "I don't think any one agency or group can solve this problem on its own."
Wright County commissioners adopted the regional inspection program last month. Under the proposal, boaters entering the four lakes — East and West Sylvia, John and Pleasant — would first have to visit an inspection and decontamination station in Annandale.
After inspection, a zip tie would be placed on their trailer. Any trailers at the four lakes found without a zip tie would be subject to a citation from county sheriff's officers.
Local lakeshore owners suggested the program last year, after starry stonewort was found in the Sylvia lakes. Only 10 lakes in the state have starry stonewort, a thick algae that turns the water yellow and can clog boat motors.
