Washing watercraft for the health of Lake Pohénégamook

Nicknamed the “Zombie” plant, it is often spread from lake to lake because boaters do not clean their boat before launching it. If they have previously sailed on a contaminated body of water, it suffices for a small piece of seaweed to remain attached to their boat … for it to proliferate exponentially. Hence the importance of washing facilities for watercraft.

“It’s operational, we invite people to wash their boats, wash the trailers. It’s free! People are welcome, ”insists Denis Ouellet, City Councilor in Pohénégamook and responsible for the environment file.

Measures which are very important for the future of the lake. However, for them to have a real impact, everyone needs to participate.

“When people come to visit the area, don’t forget to wash their boats, because we don’t want invasive aquatic species. Then, of course, act as if… to pay attention to the environment even if it is not their environment for life, ”adds Myriam Lafrance, president of the Pohénégamook Green future citizen committee.

And, in the end, it is the entire marine habitat of the lake that would suffer from the invasion of such a plant.

“It can have an impact on fishing, because the fish no longer… their living environment changes. And they can decide to change location, ”explains Myriam Lafrance.

“You really have to avoid the invasion of these invasive species, because that considerably degrades the aquatic environment. And everyone is going to lose, the boaters, the residents… We really have to avoid that, ”concluded Mr. Ouellet.

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