Boat bound for B.C. was contaminated with mussels, conservation officers say

A boat is inspected in this image handed out by the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.

Authorities in B.C. and Alberta worked together to stop a vessel from potentially introducing invasive mussels to the Okanagan, according to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.

Inspectors in Alberta flagged a mussel-fouled cruiser boat that was on its way to Kelowna during routine checks, according to a Friday social media post from the BCCOS. It was found to be contaminated with mussels and had standing lake water in its bilge.

“Thanks to swift co-ordination between Alberta and B.C. teams, the vessel was redirected for full decontamination before it could reach Okanagan waters,” the post reads.

Specifically, the inspectors in Alberta “initiated partial decontamination,” the BCCOS issued a decontamination order and resealed the vessel, and a team in Penticton completed the full decontamination Friday, according to the agency.

“This is a prime example of provinces working together to protect our waters from invasive zebra and quagga mussels,” conservation officers said.

The B.C. Invasive Mussel Defense Program inspects tens of thousands of boats per year, according to provincial data, and roughly one-to-two dozen are found to be mussel-fouled.

The BCCOS reminded boaters to always clean, drain and dry their vessels before transporting them. As of May 2024, it’s illegal to transport a watercraft with the drain plug still in place, a law with the aim of keeping B.C. free of highly invasive mussel species.