Blame hard to pin down
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/02/2025 (297 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
In a recent letter (Brandon Sun, Feb. 4, 2025) regarding zebra mussels in Clear Lake, the writer takes umbrage at an editorial which “blamed” watercraft users for the problem.
The writer is correct that there are many possible human agencies via which zebra mussels can be transferred among water bodies. However, watercraft are a generally known and undisputed significant vector.
It is an overreach for the writer to contend that all boaters/cottagers are as conscientious and responsible as he is, when it may or may not be the case. He mentions the “floating piece of wood” with zebra mussels and digresses to some unsubstantiated musings. Its source is not known: it may have come from a dock or pier colonized internally within the lake.
A Parks Canada employee conducts visual inspections for signs of zebra mussels near the Clear Lake boat cove in Riding Mountain National Park. (Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun file)
Indeed, since the precise source of the original infestation of the lake cannot be proven, it is not appropriate for the writer to declare with respect to “blame,” that “none is warranted” for any individual or collective group of users, any more than it is appropriate for the reverse.
The point should be that ALL water-related activities need to be considered and taken seriously. This applies not only to boaters, but to everybody else as well. The government can only try to stem a part of the problem, but we as individuals must each audit our own “blame” potentials and take ownership of them thoughtfully and responsibly.
DR. EVA PIP
Cloverleaf, Man.