To the editor:
The reality Is the milfoil is the simple fact the sheer amount of AB boats in our lakes.
The average wakeboard/surfboat has sitting water in ballast tanks (that never fully drain and can hold thousands of litres of water) as well the engines alone hold 40 litres just sitting in the cooling system.
These boats are pulled out of Alberta lakes so infested with milfoil you can’t even see your feet when you’re in them, and then brought straight to our lakes.
I’ve seen ads for invasive mussels but never any monitoring for milfoil, etc.
I’m an avid water sports enthusiast and do not want to dissuade tourists and visitors to our beautiful part of the country. I was also raised in Alberta in lakes that are still milfoil infested.
Unless we can ensure boats coming into our waters have been flushed and treated to ensure they are not carrying any potential contaminants, then our crystal clear lakes are sadly doomed.
Tony Pallas,
Kelowna