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Lake Protection Task Force Making Waves

Progress made in effort to protect Lake Diefenbaker from invasive species

The Lake Diefenbaker Task Force Against Aquatic Invasive Mussels has only been in existence for a couple of months now, but the small-yet-dedicated group has already started to make some waves as it relates to spreading the word about the need to protect Lake Diefenbaker from invasive species, most notably zebra mussels.

The group was formed after a meeting held in Elbow back in late April that shed light on the history of these invasive mussels and what they’re capable of in a large body of water, which includes changing the ecosystem and marine life, clogging water intakes for irrigation and domestic water usage, and covering shorelines in razor-sharp shells to the point where beaches are unsafe for walking without wearing boots.

At a follow-up regional meeting held at the Gardiner Dam Visitor Centre on Tuesday morning, June 19, a small handful were in attendance to hear about the progress the task force has made since forming, which was done in order to send the message that the region is serious about protecting Lake Diefenbaker, one of the most important bodies of water in the province.

“We just felt the government wasn’t doing enough to protect our lake and we felt we needed an effort at home, and I think this is going to be successful,” said Task Force Chair, Joanne Brochu.

To date, the task force has held organizational meetings, and just recently met with Environment Minister Dustin Duncan on June 20 for an hour-long presentation, leaving the provincial government sector with a thorough vision of what the group wants to do and what the future may entail should these mussels find their way into the lake.

Brochu noted that a government aide told them that the task force may have developed a program that could help the province, and in another very encouraging sign, the City of Regina pledged $20,000 to the task force.

The group’s funding proposal seeks to obtain monies from communities that use Lake Diefenbaker for drinking water, as well as hydro-electric plants using the waters from the Sask River system, area irrigators, and the users and providers of recreation on the lake.

The Town of Outlook has committed $1500 to the task force.

The plan is to hopefully hire three specially-trained hourly employees who will do boat inspections for mussels and work at each of the three largest boat launches on Lake Diefenbaker – the marinas at Elbow, Sask Landing and Palliser Regional Park.  As well, the task force would ideally like to purchase two decontamination units to be located at the Elbow and Sask Landing marinas respectively, but at a cost of $35,000 each, the group feels it may be limited to one for the first year.

Saskatchewan Environment has told the task force that it would train employees in both the inspection process and operating decontamination units.

Another goal for the group is forming a citizen’s patrol in which communities would be asked to nominate two or three people to attend a training session to learn how to ask the same questions asked of boat owners by gatekeepers at provincial parks.  The goal is to promote the responsibility of each community by monitoring visitors that are hauling boats intended for use in the lake.  The communities that take part in the citizen’s patrol would be supplied with an entry sign containing contact info that reads, “This community is a member of the Lake Diefenbaker Task Force against zebra mussels.  Out-of-province visitors please phone BEFORE launching.”

Outlook mayor Ross Derdall, in attendance at the Gardiner Dam meeting, left with three signs.  The town is considered a “perimeter community” as it relates to its closeness to Lake Diefenbaker, but Outlook would still need to protect their portion of the South Saskatchewan River just as much as the task force intends to protect the connecting lake.

All in all, the group is seeing a positive upswing to starting the task force and educating the public on the importance of protecting such a vital body of water.

“We’ve had wonderful uptake from communities and great cooperation from the parks,” said the task force’s Lynne Saas, also a coordinator for the Provincial Association of Resort Communities Saskatchewan who spearheaded the April meeting in Elbow.  “We are an official group, and we feel it’s as sustainable as the number of people involved.”

For more on the task force, including a PDF document of the group’s overall plans, visit the following web link:  http://www.mistusinne.com/whats-new