Just when boaters thought their biggest lake-day worry was forgetting the sunscreen, along comes a menace with a catchy name; the golden mussels, an invasive species threatening to turn Folsom Lake into their buffet. 

    The detection of golden mussels in the San Joaquin Delta as well as in the Stockton area pose a serious potential threat to the ecosystem and health of Folsom Lake,especially to the lake’s boating community. 

    While golden mussels have not yet been detected in Folsom Lake, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has taken emergency action to prevent this species from spreading.

    “This is going to ruin my summer,” Jason Fanselau, boat owner of a 2000 Tigé, said in response to this discovery.

    To effectively address the threat of these mussels, visitors to the lake must understand they outcompete native species for habitat and food, smother pipes and boats in dense clusters and can grow uncontrollable, harmful bacteria. 

    This bacteria increases the risk of dangerous waterborne diseases that have severe health concerns especially for children, the elderly and immune-deficient groups. These mussels’ destructive abilities to rapidly reproduce paired with their dense clustering allows them to attach to hard surfaces of boats and engines then spread to waters internationally, which is how they got so close to Folsom Lake, as they are originally from China and Southeast Asia. 

    “The timing just kind of sucks because it’s about to be summer,” Maverick Munoz, Granite Bay High School  student and boat owner, said.

    The CDFW has terminated boating access to Folsom Lake and implemented strict, mandatory cleaning and draining requirements as preventative measures.

    “[These rules are] awfully inconvenient for boaters,” Fanselau said. “Once [the mussels] get somewhere, they basically will overtake that habitat.”

    The sudden announcement of the invasive golden species near Folsom Lake caught many people off guard and started a race against the clock for all boat owners trying to comply with the new regulations and inspections. As quickly as the restrictions were announced, boat owners began mobilizing to be early for inspection in order to end their quarantine as early as possible. They had to rush to clean, drain and dry their boat only to just start the inspection and quarantine process. With hundreds of boaters scrambling to line up at inspection points, lake officials and workers were scrambling for order. 

    “[We have] 13-14 hour shifts we have to do in order to get all these boats through,” Ava Montez, GBHS senior and State Park Lifeguard at Folsom Lake, said.

    To stop the spread of golden mussels, boaters have the greatest responsibility by cleaning all equipment thoroughly including bumpers, ropes, lifejackets and ballasts, draining any water, and allowing their boats to dry completely before heading to an inspection. In the future, boaters should avoid launching in multiple water bodies without proper cleaning and completely drying of their boat, as this increases the risk of transporting mussels to new bodies of water. Taking these steps are equally as important as educating other boaters by sharing information, reporting sightings and making this species’ existence known.