07-05-2010, 04:04 AM
True the presence of quagga and zebra mussels has cleaned the water in the sense that they filter everything out. However the damage that they have done to the eco system of the Great Lakes is beyond any good. By filtering out the basic nutrient in the water, zooplankton populations are down, hence forage fish populations suffer. Native mussels are being displaced and destroyed by them as they are more prolific and crowd them out. They take up space in the system and put nothing back, nothing utilizes them as food.
Regarding impacts on humans, they clog water intakes to the point that extreme measures that cost millions of dollars have to be implemented. They coat every hard surface with hundreds of individuals per square inch, crowding out other native organisms. Their waste product form huge mats over the bottom, smothering plant life and other natural organisms.
They are an economic and environmental disaster where ever they are found and all the talk is NOT BS. You can have them in Colorado, just keep them out of Utah !!!
Regarding impacts on humans, they clog water intakes to the point that extreme measures that cost millions of dollars have to be implemented. They coat every hard surface with hundreds of individuals per square inch, crowding out other native organisms. Their waste product form huge mats over the bottom, smothering plant life and other natural organisms.
They are an economic and environmental disaster where ever they are found and all the talk is NOT BS. You can have them in Colorado, just keep them out of Utah !!!