Boat inspection stations are open

Outdoor tips Free boat inspection, decontamination stations open

PAUL SMITHS — Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute began offering free boat inspections and decontaminations on Memorial Day weekend at more than 60 boat launches and roadside locations across the region to help the public stop the spread of aquatic invasive species.

AWI staff educate boaters, anglers and other visitors about aquatic invasive species and inspect and decontaminate their boats to meet the “Clean, Drain and Dry” standard required by New York state. Boat inspections are not mandatory.

The program operates on behalf of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Adirondack Aquatic Invasive Species Spread Prevention Program to help the public observe the New York spread prevention law which prohibits invasive plants and animals on boats launching into lakes, ponds and rivers.

The AWI-operated boat steward program is the largest in the state and hires more than 100 seasonal staff to run decontamination stations and boat inspection locations at popular boat launches throughout the Adirondacks and northern New York.

The spread prevention network contains the busiest launches such as those found at Great Sacandaga Lake, Lake Champlain, the Saranac and Fulton lake chains, and Lake Placid as well as launches at smaller lakes that are either vulnerable to invasion or pose a threat of invasive species spread to surrounding waterbodies. This year, Mirror Lake will have its first watershed steward to inspect the non-motorized boats that access this lake in the village of Lake Placid.

Eurasian watermilfoil, variable leaf milfoil and curly-leaf pondweed are the most common aquatic invasive species found in Adirondack waterways. Water chestnut, spiny water flea, Asian clams and zebra mussels are not as common but just are as threatening. These nonnative plants and animals degrade water quality, significantly limit fishing, swimming and boating opportunities, and cost towns and lake associations millions of dollars to manage.

Information about inspection and decontamination station locations, aquatic invasive species ecology and steps the public can take to maintain the quality of New York’s waterways is at www.adkcleanboats.org.