MEETING NOTES: Mussels dominate district discussions

Arvin-Edison Water Storage District: CLICK HERE
Wheeler Ridge-Maricopa Water Storage District: CLICK HERE
North Kern Water Storage District: CLICK HERE

North Kern

Invasive golden mussels were found May 5 in the North Kern Water Storage District system, General Manager Dave Hampton reported at the district’s May 19 meeting.

Hampton said there was a large number and speculated the colony had been covered in silt until recently.

The mussels were discovered in water that North Kern was moving for Shafter-Wasco Irrigation District. Due to this Shafter-Wasco has offered to help North Kern cover some of the treatment costs. The exact amount wasn’t discussed and no contract has been entered into, yet.

Board members held a long discussion about labor and chemical costs, as well as longevity of contracts with mussel treatment companies. The board ultimately made a motion to work with Blue Tech Water, largely because the company offers a one-month contract option. 

Board members also asked staff members to learn the treatment process to be able to take that task over later on.

Wheeler Ridge-Maricopa

At its May 13 meeting, the Wheeler Ridge-Maricopa Water Storage District agreed to increase its operations, maintenance and repair fees by $15 to help with costs of combatting mussels.

The district recently spent close to $300,000 to treat one its main canals. The board set aside $2.5 million to fight the invasive mussels at an earlier meeting.

Arvin-Edison

Staff at the Arvin-Edison Water District presented potential future treatment plans for golden mussels at the district’s May 12 meeting. The district just completed its initial, $2.8 million,  eradication treatment, which was very successful.

“We have found zero of surviving anything,” said Samuel Blue, resource manager for the district.

Blue told the board he would be bringing a proposal to do a second treatment in September. Board members questioned why the next treatment would be delayed so many months.

Stephen Burkholder of Dudek, the consulting firm working with Arvin-Edison, told the board that if they resumed treatment in May it would be too soon. This would cause the district to need to continue to do more frequent treatments. He said that treatment would also not wait until winter because by then the mussels could cause worse damage. 

Blue assured the board that staff would be routinely searching for mussels to determine if the next treatment phase would need to be sooner.