NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 29, 2016
CONTACT: Dana Kazel, Communications Manager
218-725-5049 (office) • 218-591-2219 (cell)
St. Louis County Board sees AIS inspection/decontamination demonstration
St. Louis County commissioners were able to see firsthand
the work being done to prevent the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species
(AIS). On Tuesday, the Sportsmen’s Club of Lake Vermilion and the North St. Louis Soil and
Water Conservation District demonstrated for Board members the watercraft
inspection and decontamination process that is now being done at the Y Store
near Tower.
The decontamination unit at the Y Store is a recent addition to the
efforts of these groups to protect Lake Vermilion. Similar inspections with a decontamination unit are also going
on at at the County Store in Cook. The units are staffed Friday through Sunday, and anyone who passes by is welcome to stop and use them.
Since the fishing opener, nearly 4,000 watercraft have been inspected at 11 boat landings and three private resorts on Lake Vermilion. Inspections typically take about three minutes. If a potential threat is detected. the boat owner is advised to decontaminate the watercraft at one of the two new sites. The decontamination process involves a hot water rinse to kill potential invasive species, followed by a high pressure rinse to remove anything that has attached itself.
The County Board has awarded $309,000 to the Sportsmen’s Club
of Lake Vermilion over the last two years. The inspection program is one of more than a dozen projects funded
by the County using money from the Minnesota Legislature to prevent the
introduction of or control the spread of AIS in lakes and rivers in the state.
Through the AIS Prevention Aid Program, counties are allocated funds based on a formula that factors each county’s share of watercraft trailer launches and watercraft trailer parking spaces. Of Minnesota’s 87 counties, St. Louis County has the second highest number of watercraft trailer launches (166) and the highest number of watercraft trailer parking spaces (1,173).
Also on Tuesday, commissioners, acting as the Committee of the
Whole, gave initial approval to awarding an additional $6,000 to Canosia
Township to conduct boat launch site inspections on Caribou Lake. The township
already received $10,000 to do similar work on Pike Lake and wanted to expand
the program.
In a recent survey, 87 percent of St. Louis County residents
responded they felt it was essential or very important to take action to
prevent the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species.
Aquatic invasive species disrupt the health of water bodies, and pose a myriad of threats to natural, cultural and recreational resources of the region. Key AIS species of concern in St. Louis County include zebra and quagga mussels, the New Zealand mudsnail, viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS), round and tubenose gobies, Eurasian ruffe, faucet snail, mystery snail, spiny water flea, Eurasian watermilfoil, purple loosestrife and rusty crayfish.
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Phil Norvitch, water resources specialist for the North St. Louis County Soil and Water Conservation District, rinses boat at the Y Store in Cook.The inspection and decontamination process is being done to combat the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species.
Looking on are, L-R: St. Louis County Public Works Director Jim Foldesi, Commissioners Steve Raukar and Frank Jewell, County Administrator Kevin Gray, and Commissioners Tom Rukavina and Patrick Boyle.
Phil Norvitch, water resources specialist for the North St. Louis County Soil and Water Conservation District, rinses boat at the Y Store in Cook.The inspection and decontamination process is being done to combat the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species. Watching the demonstration are: County Commissioner Patrick Boyle; Jeff Lovgren, AIS Program Coordinator for the Lake Vermilion Sportsmen's Club; County Commissioner Frank Jewell and County Administrator Kevin Gray.
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