Brazos River Authority. Zebra mussels became estab-
lished in Texas in Lake Texoma in 2009. In 2012, they were found in Lake Ray Roberts and the Elm Fork of the Trinity River. Last year, zebra mussels spread to Lakes Bridgeport, Lavon, Lewisville and Belton. From an environmental perspec-
your boat. This is critical, because in their initial state, zebra mussels are invisible to the naked eye.” The soon-to-be statewide rule,
which is similar to those in other states impacted by zebra mussels, is based on the fact that trailered boats tend to be the most likely way zebra mussels get from one water body to another. Since boat- ers in Texas travel throughout the state to engage in various forms of recreational activity, from skiing to fi shing, the rule has been made statewide. The regulation also requires the
draining of live wells, bilges, mo- tors and any other receptacles or water-intake systems coming into contact with public waters. Live fi sh, including personally
caught live bait, cannot be trans- ported in a vessel in water that comes from the water body where they were caught. Personally caught live bait can be used in the water body where it was caught. Anglers are allowed to transport
and use commercially purchased live bait provided persons in pos- session of the bait have a receipt that identifi es the source of the bait.
tscra.org
Any live bait purchased from a lo- cation on or adjacent to a public water body that is transported in water from that water body could only be used as bait on that same water body. The rules allow anglers partici-
pating in a fi shing tournament con- fi ned to 1 water body to transport live fi sh in water from that single water body to an identifi ed off-site weigh-in location, provided all wa- ter is drained and properly disposed of before leaving that location. An- glers are required to possess docu- mentation provided by tournament organizers that would identify them as participants in the tournament. Movement from 1 access point to
another on the same lake during the same day does not require draining, and there is an exception for gov- ernmental activities and emergen- cies. Marine sanitary systems are not covered by these regulations. “The BRA supports the efforts
of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and will continue to assist them in preventing the spread of mussels to our system reservoirs,” says Phil Ford, general manager and chief executive offi cer for the
tive, zebra mussels are fi lter feeders that compete with baitfi sh such as shad for available forage. Any im- pact on baitfi sh in turn can affect their predators — game fi sh such as bass, striped bass and catfi sh. Zebra mussels also threaten native mussel populations because they colonize on their shells and essentially suf- focate them. “Zebra mussel infestations may
also be related to blooms of toxic blue-green algae,” Van Zee says. “In 2011, Lake Texoma was closed to swimming for a time because of an outbreak of blue-green algae. The bottom line about zebra mussels is that they are bad news for Texas and we need to do everything we can to stop their spread.” TPWD and a coalition of part-
ners are working to slow the spread of zebra mussels by reminding boat- ers to “Clean, Drain and Dry” their vessels before traveling from one lake to another. The partners in this effort include: North Texas Munici- pal Water District, Tarrant Regional Water District, City of Dallas Water Utilities Department, Trinity River Authority, San Jacinto River Author- ity, Sabine River Authority, Brazos River Authority, Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, Lower Colorado River Authority, Upper Trinity Re- gional Water District, Canadian River Municipal Water Authority, City of Grapevine, Water Oriented Recreation District of Comal County and the Lady Bird Johnson Wild- fl ower Center.
July 2014 The Cattleman 57
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