Western Basin Invasive Mussel Incident Response Toolkit
A Resource to Facilitate a Response to an Introduction of Invasive Mussels in the Western Basins
Introduction
Since their introduction to the Great Lakes region of North America in the 1980s, invasive zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) and quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis), known as dreissenids, have expanded their distribution across North America, primarily via trailered watercraft. In the Fall of 2024, the invasive golden mussel (Limnoperna fortunei) was detected in the Port of Stockton in California. The establishment of invasive mussels in previously uninfested water bodies precipitated the development of this website.
Toolkit Purpose
Entities developing rapid response plans and actions in western watershed basins can use this website to consider response alternatives and their potential effects on listed species and critical habitats. The toolkit includes information on western basin characteristics; key federal and state contacts; invasive mussel biology and distribution; environmental, economic, and cultural effects of invasive mussels; use of the Incident Management System; response resources; potential effects on listed species and critical habitats, and environmental compliance, including Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation steps.
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The information in this online toolkit is intended to be used for planning purposes only. Entities engaged in planning for conducting an actual response should take steps to consult directly with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service.
This project was funded by the Bureau of Reclamation Award #R24AP00295.
The Consequences of No Action
This toolkit has been prepared to facilitate a rapid response to an introduction of invasive mussels. The anticipated consequences of taking no action may include long-lasting, significant, and detrimental economic, environmental, and social/cultural effects that would alter ecosystem function and processes throughout significant portions of the western basins and affect quality of life for people who live in the basins. There are many factors influencing whether or not attempts to eradicate invasive mussels in any waterbody will be successful. And the potential effects of response actions to listed species and critical habitats are never fully known prior to control actions. Thus, at the time of an actual response, it is prudent to weigh the short-term and long-term economic and environmental costs of eradication attempts with the likely long-term economic and environmental costs of established populations of invasive mussels.