swimbait | Tue Mar-04-08 11:14 PM |
Charter member
9890 posts
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#4859, "Mussels - Solving It - Brainstorm"
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I like to think that some of the best minds in fishing visit this site. I've been wracking my brain for creative solutions to the mussel problem, but one brain by itself can only get so far.
If 100 people replied to this thread with ideas on how to solve the mussel problem, so that we can continue to fish the lakes in California, we might come up with something good.
So I propose a brainstorming session. No idea is a bad idea. Bring them all, and let's see what happens.
Here's a few that come to my mind, however flawed they may be. I offer them in hopes of triggering your thoughts.
* Close every single body of water in the state to boating for 6 months. Then check every body of water for mussels. Lakes that have mussels remain closed. Lakes that don't remain open.
* Install boat hoists and cleaning stations at every lake. The hoist lifts the boat off the trailer, the cleaning station takes care of the rest. Inspect before and after cleaning.
* Initiate a boat sharing program where bass fishermen operate pools of rental bass boats at the lake so that boats do not have to be transported over land.
* Create secure, dry, boat storage areas with arrival inspections. Once a boat is stored at one of these approved facilities for enough days for all mussels to die due to dryness, the boat is issued a pass good for one lake entry at any lake.
* Lobby the water districts to suck it up and deal with infestation. Let people boat and fish like always. Pass along any mussel removal costs to the water users.
In addition, offer mussel cleaning certification courses at City Colleges around the state. Divers could be trained in removal procedures and equipment. Water districts could then hire them, perhaps at lower wages due to the increase in workers supplied.
* Build mussel treatment facilities adjacent to pump in/out locations on the lakes. This would incur a high fixed cost initially, but solve water pumping issues in perpetuity.
Please take 10 minutes out of your day to reply to this thread.
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Slough Crew | Wed Mar-05-08 09:42 AM |
Member since Jan 22nd 2006
177 posts
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#4866, "RE: Mussels - Solving It - Brainstorm"
In response to Reply # 0
Wed Mar-05-08 09:43 AM by Slough Crew
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Does Catch and Release only kill the larva or can it kill the mature mussels too? If it does, dump barges full of the stuff into the areas where the mussels are growing. Jake J
http://calfishing.com/gallery/v/members/jakej/
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Matt Peters | Wed Mar-05-08 01:37 PM |
Charter member
2036 posts
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#4869, "RE: Mussels - Solving It - Brainstorm"
In response to Reply # 5
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Total brainstorm from a not very well informed guy:
Leverage 2 things, that America has a competitive advantage in:
1: Technology 2: Higher Education/Research
There has got to be a way to leverage science and technology to come up with a way to genetically alter the mussels so they can't reproduce or eat or attach themselves to pipes or something like that. Or, as Matt said, create a surface they can't attach themselves to on the pipes or intakes. Or create something that when they filter feed on it, it kills them or otherwise harms them, but doesn't affect anything else in the lake.
Science and technology should be leveraged to find a safe way to kill or otherwise mitigate the mussels from growing, eating, reproducing or living comfortably. That would solve this. Not easy to do, but I mean, we seem to be good at making things extinct and go away with our capitalistic ways. I would think we could erradicate something pretty easily.
One other thought: Do they taste good? Is there a market for selling any part of them? Can they make cat or dog food? Can you make vitamins out of the shells? If there is a use or by product, someone would likely pay to harvest these things for some use...
MP
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Bassin | Wed Mar-05-08 02:51 PM |
Member since Feb 18th 2003
1214 posts
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#4871, "RE: Mussels - Solving It - Brainstorm"
In response to Reply # 3
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Mitch,
I work a desal plant for GE Water out at Diablo Power Plant on the central coast. To answer a couple of those questions ...
"I know PGE runs some power plants on the coast that use salt water for their cooling. So how do they deal with intrusive mussels, barnacles, etc in their cooling water intakes? " "How do desalination plants deal with the problems of intrusion in their salt water intakes?"
Along with our (GE's) feed lines, PG&E uses bi-yearly "Heat treatment" on the lines. Pre Heating fresh water then running it through the lines. PG&E also uses "labor" to go into the large intakes to scrape barnacles. I am affraid these solutions would not do a lake much good.
I am one that believes that inspection and cleaning stations are a must. Also, I think it is a Federal problem that should be researched fully. It sounds like the answer will be introducing a creature that can wipe out the mussels with out causing more harm to our great resources.
Bryan
To fish is to live!
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