New law initiated to protect Oregon waters from invasive species.

Oregon boaters will soon be on the front lines of a war against aquatic invasive species. Beginning Jan. 1, 2010, operators of all registered boats (power and sail) and manually powered boats 10 feet or longer are required by a new law to purchase an Aquatic Invasive Species Permit to fund prevention and control programs.

The environmental protection law, created by the 2009 Oregon Legislature, is designed to protect Oregon's waters from destructive invaders including the quagga and zebra mussels that are rapidly spreading across the nation degrading water quality, depleting native fish and waterfowl populations and costing millions of dollars in maintenance of water and power facilities. The new program will be implemented by the Oregon State Marine Board and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Registered boaters will pay an automatic $5 surcharge as part of their boater registration.

Out-of-state motorboat operators need to purchase an annual permit for $22 ($20 permit plus $2 agent fee) through ODFW license agents, ODFW offices that sell licenses and on the ODFW Web site.



For the complete article see the 11-28-2009 issue.

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