Slowly but surely, the highly invasive, rapidly reproducing zebra mussel is encroaching upon central Minnesota. While that’s not a surprise, it should concern area residents because the long-term effects and implications of this nonnative species on Minnesota’s waterways are yet to be fully understood.

At best, they are a nuisance. But only time will tell if they wreak havoc with ecosystems throughout Minnesota.

Central Minnesotans are probably about to find all of that out because zebra mussels were found in Rice Lake, a backwater of the Mississippi River just outside of Brainerd. Coupled with the discovery this summer of the mussels in Mille Lacs Lake and the 2003 discovery in Lake Ossawinnamakee north of Brainerd, it seems just a matter of time until they show up in the St. Cloud area.

Why? Because Rice and Ossawinnamakee lakes feed the Mississippi, which as we all know, runs through St. Cloud and provides the metro area with most of its water. Zebra mussels could make their way downriver to the area. Or they could get here much faster if their microscopic larvae are transported by wildlife or inadvertently through boats and other watercraft that use the river or Mille Lacs.

Lake Erie is considered the U.S. epicenter of the mussel invasion, which began in 1988. By 1990, colonies began to thrive in the Duluth-Superior harbor. A few years later they showed up in the St. Croix River in eastern Minnesota and the Mississippi and Zumbro rivers in southern Minnesota.

It’s somewhat ironic that the mussels in Rice were discovered in October because it’s invasive species month in Minnesota, said Jay Rendall, coordinator of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ invasive species program. In fact, Rendall said the DNR planned to conduct a public meeting near Garrison on the shores of Mille Lacs, which is one of the state’s premier walleye fisheries. He said the DNR is on the verge of declaring that lake infested.

Such a declaration brings with it increased DNR education and awareness efforts so that lake users minimize the chances of spreading the mussels. More signs will be posted around the lake, and people will be urged to empty their watercrafts of all lake water, remove all vegetation and either wash the craft with hot water or let it dry for three to five days before using it in another lake or river.

Those steps reduce the risk of spreading the mussels and other invasive species, but as the discovery near Brainerd shows, they are likely not enough to stop it.

&045; St. Cloud Times