Boats back on Clear Lake this summer

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/01/2025 (312 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Parks Canada has determined that eradicating zebra mussels from Clear Lake in Riding Mountain National Park is not feasible and will initiate a new plan to bring boats back to the lake this summer, with the stipulation of “one boat, one lake.”

The federal government agency made the announcement in a news release posted online Tuesday, which included how the decision was made after “input and advice” from Indigenous advisers, the provincial government and leading scientific and international experts.

“Parks Canada is committed to managing the impacts of zebra mussels on the natural environment and to the vitality of the local tourism economy,” stated the release.

Under the “one boat, one lake” program, boaters will select a lake — and that’s the only body of water they can use for the rest of the season. If the boat is taken out of a lake, it must be decontaminated and pass an AIS inspection before it can be launched elsewhere.

The plan was not a surprise for locals, said George Hartlen, CAO of Friends of Riding Mountain National Park, who added he works closely with Parks Canada and is a member of the Wasagaming Chamber of Commerce.

“This is a scenario where we are trying to find the best path forward to deal with what we have,” Hartlen said, adding: “At least this will allow those who want to take their watercraft, personal or otherwise onto a lake, (to) be able to do so, as long as they follow the rules and regulations inside the park and outside the park.”

This program will be similar to the Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) prevention program that was implemented in 2023, Parks Canada added in the release, and this weekend, representatives will be asking for public input.

Parks Canada will be set up in Wasagaming, near the skating rink behind the Visitor Centre, from noon to 4 p.m., on Saturday and Sunday. The information collected will be used to inform the management of Clear Lake’s AIS prevention program for 2025.

Zebra mussels were found in Clear Lake in November 2023, when a clump of 48 live mussels was found — the first discovery of its kind in the national park.

The issue persisted into the summer of 2024, with additional discoveries of living juvenile mussels, an adult mussel found by snorkelers, and several found in Boat Cove.

In May last year, the federal government closed Clear Lake to all watercraft, followed by the installation of an underwater containment curtain in August, which had to be removed in September when it was damaged by heavy winds and waves.

That same month, the invasive species was found on the north shore of the lake, and in October, some mussels were seen attached to the dock infrastructure.

When asked if Hartlen considered whether Parks Canada could do more to stop the spread, he pointed out that other waters in Canada have them, and communities on Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg have been able to deal with them.

“Some people will definitely see this as a give-up, but it’s difficult to say at this point, particularly since the lake has been closed,” he said. “Last year, some people really enjoyed having no watercraft on the lake, they enjoyed that. Other ones were definitely missing the access to the top of the water.

“So, this is somewhat of a compromise — an in between, and we’ll see how it goes for everybody.”

Along with asking for public input this weekend in Clear Lake, Parks Canada has posted an online questionnaire that people can complete until the end of February.

There are 14 questions to gauge support for the “one boat, one lake” program, and asks if they agree or disagree with a seasonal launch fee for motorized watercraft, or a user pay launch fee.

The questionnaire is available at https://parks-parcs.simplesurvey.com/f/s/Clear-Lake-Riding-Mountain-2024

» mmcdougall@brandonsun.com

» X: @enviromichele