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The B.C. Conservation Officer Service said the financial impact doesn’t include potential damage to aquatic food webs that would seriously harm fish stocks, including valuable native fish populations such as sockeye salmon.
The mussels are filter feeders that strain suspended food particles out of the water, disrupting natural food chains.
The Invasive Species Council of B.C. is advising aquarium owners and those who stock outdoor ponds with plants to carefully check any recent purchases of ornamental plants made either in stores or by mail.
Conservation officers started notifying and inspecting plant and pet stores across B.C. over the weekend.
They have spread in Ontario and Quebec and are now found in 24 U.S. states as far west as California. In 2013, zebra mussels were discovered in Lake Winnipeg, while in 2016, invasive mussels were confirmed in the Tiber Reservoir in Montana. Gail Wallin, executive director of the Invasive Species Council of British Columbia, said to date, there has been no reported introduction of live zebra mussels into B.C. lakes or waterways, but other invasive species have caused serious damage. Wallin said some of the most serious invasive species were originally sold as pets or plants for water gardens and aquariums.