Check, Clean, Dry around lakes this summer

Check, Clean, Dry is a message you’ll come across if you’re out enjoying the Rotorua Lakes this summer.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council summer students Adam Brown and Tracey Bates are working with Department of Conservation contractor Valerie Raethel to raise awareness about aquatic pests and to promote the ‘Check, Clean, Dry’ message to lake users.

They will be busy this summer attending events and visiting boat ramps, camping grounds and other key sites around the lakes to make recreational lake users aware of the need to be responsible and help keep the lakes cleaner.

Adam Brown said aquatic pests could spread quickly and easily.

“At this stage the Rotorua lakes are free from most pest fish and some aquatic weeds, so we’ll be working to make sure we keep it that way,” Adam said.

Aquatic pests include weeds, pest fish and didymo, which is an invasive freshwater microscopic alga that forms a thick brown layer which smothers rocks and submerged plants on the lake or river bed. These blooms are a serious threat to native plant and fish life, and also to recreational use of the area.

Tracey Bates said it only takes a fragment of weed to begin the spread of invasive aquatic weeds and pest fish.

“Lake users should always follow a Check, Clean, Dry process. This means checking all your equipment for any weed fragments and, to prevent the spread of didymo, cleaning with a five percent detergent solution, before drying for 48 hours or more,” Tracey said.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council installed a weed cordon around the boat ramp at the main beach on Lake Ōkataina earlier this year following successful trials in Lake Rotoma. The weed cordon has been specifically designed to prevent the spread of aquatic pests that are present in nearby lakes.

An isolated site of Hornwort which was discovered last year at the southern end of Lake Okataina is under active control by the Regional Council in a hope to eradicate the infestation.

With the influx of visitors expected during summer, the students know that awareness is the key to protecting our lakes from any further aquatic pests this summer.

Tracey said it was important that lake users take responsibility for keeping our lakes beautiful.

“A big part of our work is getting the message out among lake users about the damage that aquatic pests can do, and the positive impact that individuals can make by simply checking, cleaning and drying their gear,” said Tracey.

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