Washington on guard for troublesome mussel found in Idaho last year

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Washington is upping efforts to keep an invasive freshwater mussel from gaining a shell-hold in the state’s rivers and lakes, using tactics ranging from DNA testing to shellfish-sniffing dogs.

Quagga mussels can cause major problems as layers of them crust over components of hydroelectric dams and locks, or clog drinking water or irrigation systems. Fisheries and fish ladders that allow salmon to bypass dams could be disrupted, too. The mussels can also outcompete native species, throw off water quality, and otherwise degrade ecosystems.

They were found last year in Idaho, stoking new worries about their threat to the region.

Washington’s Invasive Species Council cites estimates that it will cost $100 million annually to keep the state’s power and water infrastructure running if quagga mussels or non-native zebra mussels were to invade. That amount doesn’t factor in the cost of harm to habitat or fishing.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2024/06/29/washington-on-guard-for-troublesome-mussel-found-in-idaho-last-year/