Aquatic invasive species expert to speak in Fergus Falls

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Mark Gaikowski with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center will be the featured speaker at the Saturday, July 23 Otter Tail County Coalition of Lake Associations meeting.

He'll speak about the USGS research on aquatic invasive species, including zebra mussels and future field experimental uses of biocides to control aquatic invasive species like zebra mussels.

The doors to the Ottertail Community Center, located at 103 Lake Avenue South, Ottertail, will be open at 8:30 a.m. for socializing over a cup of coffee prior to the start of the meeting. The meeting will start promptly at 9 a.m.

The USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, La Crosse, Wisconsin Field Office is one of the research centers conducting ecological research to support the Department of the Interior’s and other local/state/federal agencies management of natural resources.

Gaikowski is the branch manager of the aquatic ecosystem heath branch of the USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Services Center. The branch is a multidisciplinary team of research scientists collecting data to support the registration of chemicals by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to control aquatic invasive species like sea lamprey, Asian carp and zebra mussels and the approval of drugs to control or manage disease in fish reared in public or private fish hatcheries.

In addition, if the Minnesota state budget is resolved in time, Nathan Olson, the invasive species specialist with the Department of Natural Resources Office in Fergus Falls will also attend the July 23 meeting to speak about aquatic invasive species and zebra mussels.

All meetings are open to the public.

Tags: zebra mussels, regional news, news, updates, ais, lakes