09.e Informational Report_Inspection Update_CMSCWD_2022Supervisors: Tim Behrends Bob Rosenquist Diane Blake John Rheinberger Jim Levitt
MEMORANDUM
TO: CMSCWD Board of Managers
Council of the City of Scandia
Square Lake Association
Big Marine Lake Association
FROM: Matt Downing, Washington Conservation District
DATE: 12/27/2022
RE: Countywide Watercraft Inspection Program
Thank you for your support of the 2022 AIS Watercraft Inspection Program. With your commitment to the
resources of your watershed combined with those of the county and state, an additional 900 hours of
inspections were performed that otherwise would not have occurred. In CMSCWD there were 4,895
inspections performed. As in previous years, emphasis was placed on Square and Big Marine Lakes, with
3,822 inspections occurring on Big Marine alone. Throughout the inspection process, boaters were educated
on how to better protect the lakes they use and steps were taken every inspection to ensure that invasive
species were not introduced into each lake at the time of launch/transportation away from the lake.
Additional work was done at Square Lake Park where two boater tool stations were installed with help from
the Square Lake Association and CMSCWD. Throughout the season maintenance was also conducted on bait
bin disposal stations present at Big Carnelian, Square Lake Park, Big Marine Park, and Big Marine’s north
launch. These bait disposal containers were installed in 2021 through a partnership with CLFLWD using
grant funding from the MNDNR.
Attached you will find the summary of the 2022 season that was prepared for Washington County. Please
contact me if you have any questions about this or any other aspect of watercraft inspections. I look forward
to working with you in the future on prevention and management of invasive species.
Supervisors: Tim Behrends Bob Rosenquist Diane Blake John Rheinberger Jim Levitt
Washington County AIS Inspection Summary Points 2022
The WCD supervised 8 DNR authorized Level 1 Watercraft Inspectors for the 2022 season. Funding was
received from Washington County, Carnelian Marine St. Croix Watershed District (CMSCWD), Big Marine
Lake Association (BMLA), Square Lake Association (SLA), the City of Scandia, Ramsey County Soil and
Water Division (RCSWCD), Bald Eagle Lake Association (BELA), Valley Branch Watershed District (VBWD),
Lake DeMontreville Olson Association (LDOA), and Clear Lake Association (CLA). These inspectors were
present at 18 water access locations starting May 15th through October 29th. During the inspection
season, 2,755 hours of inspections occurred resulting in 8,406 inspections. Compared to 2021, 1,283
fewer hours of inspections occurred, and 5,481 fewer inspections were performed. The decrease in
hours and inspections was due to a number of factors, including staffing difficulties and drought
conditions affecting water levels at some boat landings. Drought conditions, as well as decreased
restrictions on indoor activities for the COVID-19 pandemic, may have also had an impact on the overall
number of boaters and lake users for the 2022 season.
The number of inspections performed in 2022 was lower than the number completed in 2021.
Compared to 2021, there was a 1% increase in the number of entering inspections conducted versus
exiting inspections. As with previous years, emphasis has been placed on entering inspections to prevent
new infestations. However, exiting inspections are equally important at already infested lakes to prevent
infestations from spreading.
60%
40%
Inspection Breakdown 2022
Entering
Exiting
6439
8989
13650 13887
8406
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
14000
16000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Watercraft Inspections
Conducted per Year
While the number of inspections and inspection hours decreased in 2022, the average amount of
inspections conducted per inspection hour remained relatively high due to years of observing boater use
patterns, with an emphasis placed on staffing at lakes during daily high use times. A large number of
inspections conducted on the weekends at Bald Eagle consistently throughout the season is also a
contributor to this average. Inspection numbers from 2020 and 2021 are likely outliers due to pandemic
conditions. When compared to pre-pandemic seasons and 2022, the number of inspections conducted
in 2020 and 2021 are far above average. When compared with 2018, which had a similar number of
inspection hours, inspection efficiency in 2022 was higher, with 1,967 more inspections conducted and
only thirteen more inspection hours for an average of 3.05 inspections conducted per hour in 2022
versus an average of 2.35 inspections conducted per hour in 2018. Funding was available to conduct
additional inspections in 2022, however understaffing prevented planned coverage for the season.
938
2781 3042
6439
8989
13650 13887
8406
970
2048 2020
2742 3169 3381
4038
2755
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
14000
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Watercraft Inspections Conducted per Year
Number of Inspections Inspection Hours
0.97
1.36 1.51
2.35
2.84
4.04
3.44
3.05
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Average Inspections Conducted per Hour by Year
Supervisors: Tim Behrends Bob Rosenquist Diane Blake John Rheinberger Jim Levitt
There was a decrease in drain plug violations in 2021 from 3% to 2%. Of the 77 instances where the plug
was found to be in when the boater arrived in 2022, only 2% resulted in the boater being sent away to
drain their watercraft due to the discovery of water in the hull. In these instances, a boater is sent away
from the ramp and may return when the water has been drained. Over the years there has been a
reduced number of drain plug violations found by WCD inspectors. The continued goal of the Watercraft
Inspection Program is to educate boaters on AIS laws and decrease violations like these.
3%
97%
Drain Plug Violations 2021
Incoming Inspections)
Drain plug is in
Drain plug is out
2%
98%
Drain Plug Violations 2022
Incoming Inspections)
Drain plug is in
Drain Plug is out
7%
5% 5%
4%
5%
3%
2%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Incoming Drain Plug Violation Percentage by Year
Of the 4,948 incoming inspections performed in 2022, 75 violations were observed. This is a slight
decrease percentage-wise from the previous years’ inspections. As in previous years, by far the most
common violation was the presence of aquatic plants, either attached to the trailer or the watercraft.
Aquatic plants were found in 71 of the 75 inspections with violations. No zebra mussel violations were
observed by WCD watercraft inspectors in 2022. When zebra mussels are found, boaters are denied
launch and directed to decontamination sites. Additionally, all zebra mussel violations are forwarded to
the DNR for enforcement.
7834
239
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
Total
Incoming Violations
Plant, Animal, Water) 2021
No
Yes
4948
75
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
Total
Incoming Violations
Plant, Animal, Water) 2022
No
Yes
11
675
619
440
2225
1597
10
29
733
141
197
6
1193
271
255
4
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
62000101, SILVER, SILVER LK PWA
62000201, BALD EAGLE, COUNTY PARK
82004601, SQUARE
82004901, BIG CARNELIAN, BIG CARNELIAN
82005201, BIG MARINE, NORTH
82005203, BIG MARINE, REGIONAL CTY PK
82005901, GOOSE, GOOSE
820101, MISSISSIPPI RIVER, MISS - ST PAUL PK PWA
82010101, DEMONTREVILLE, DEMONTREVILLE
82010401, JANE, WEYER'S LANDING
82010601, ELMO, ELMO
82011501, TANNERS
82016301, CLEAR, CLEAR LK
82016701, WHITE BEAR, CITY PWA
82016702, WHITE BEAR, CO PWA
820208, ST CROIX RIVER, LOGHOUSE ACCESS
Total Inspections by Landing 2022
Supervisors: Tim Behrends Bob Rosenquist Diane Blake John Rheinberger Jim Levitt
As in 2021, staff were present at 18 boat landings throughout the season. The highest number of
inspection hours were conducted at Big Marine. Clear lake received additional inspection hours this year
thanks to additional funding from CLA and was the lake with the second-most inspection hours. Historic
boater patterns played a part in the distribution of hours, as well as water levels due to drought
conditions. Big Marine was the most inspected lake, consistent with previous years. Clear Lake was the
second-most inspected lake, followed by Demontreville and Bald Eagle. Most lakes saw a decrease in
inspections conducted in 2022 when compared to 2021 due to the reduction in inspection hours. Staff
were present at both Big Marine’s south launch and Oneka’s public access, but no inspections were
conducted due to lack of use while inspectors were present.
Average inspections conducted per hour in 2022 when compared to 2021 are overall very similar,
though some lakes saw changes in efficiency. Of most interesting note is Bald Eagle, which averaged
6.65 inspections per hour in 2021, and saw an average of 4.96 inspections per hour in 2022. In both
years inspectors were present Saturday and Sunday from approximately 5am to 10am. The change in
average could suggest a change in boater use patterns at Bald Eagle specifically, or a decrease in boating
in the 2022 season in general.
0.73
4.96
1.71
2.35
3.92 3.74
0.48
2.07
2.72
2.20
3.13
1.20
2.32
6.16
5.43
0.50
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
7.00
Average Inspections per Hour 2022
Please note: although this summary addresses trends and data for Washington County lakes it
references only those that are serviced by the Washington Conservation District. All the lakes located in
CLFLWD have inspections performed by CLFLWD or Chisago County staff. Also note that the MNDNR
performs inspections on many of the high use landings in Washington County, as well as being primarily
responsible for the access points on the Saint Croix River. Lakes in Ramsey County are also staffed by
inspectors from Ramsey County.
1.15
6.65
1.49
2.43
4.79
0.60
4.21
0.27
0.82
4.31
1.34
2.74
0.90
1.33
2.84
6.18 6.37
0.33
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
7.00
Average Inspections per Hour 2021