DAR File No. 39714

Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources

Rule R657-60

Aquatic Invasive Species Interdiction

Notice of Proposed Rule

(Amendment)

DAR File No.: 39714
Filed: 09/08/2015 01:34:09 PM

RULE ANALYSIS

Purpose of the rule or reason for the change:

This rule is purposed to define procedures and regulations designed to prevent and control the spread of aquatic invasive species within the State of Utah.

Summary of the rule or change:

The rule revisions allow for: 1) an addition to the definition for accepted decontamination practices to allow for alternate forms of decontamination for business entities authorized through a certificate of registration; 2) a modification to the boundary of Lake Powell on the Colorado River to the boundary of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area instead of the Spanish Bottom in Canyonlands National Park; and 3) define in rule the unlawful nature of destroying inspection certifications applied to watercraft leaving a Quagga Mussel affected waterbody or a watercraft inspection station.

State statutory or constitutional authorization for this rule:

• Section 23-27-401
• Section 23-14-19
• Section 23-14-18

Anticipated cost or savings to:

the state budget:

The Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) determines that these amendments do not create a cost impact to the state budget or DWR's budget. However, the 2014 legislative General Session appropriated $245,000 to aid in the implementation costs associated with this rule.

local governments:

This rule does not create any direct cost or savings impact to local governments because they are not directly affected by the rule. Nor are local governments indirectly impacted because the rule does not create a situation requiring services from local governments.

small businesses:

This rule may create a cost impact to boat owners and other water enthusiasts in Utah in that if Dreissena Mussels are found in Utah the cost to decontaminate boats and other conveyances will be at the expense of the owner but should not impact small businesses owners.

persons other than small businesses, businesses, or local governmental entities:

This rule may create a cost impact to boat owners and other water enthusiasts in Utah in that if Dreissena Mussels are found in Utah the cost to decontaminate boats and other conveyances will be at the expense of the owner.

Compliance costs for affected persons:

DWR determines that this rule may create a cost impact to individuals who own water vessels and boat in infested waters, because they would be required to decontaminate the conveyance.

Comments by the department head on the fiscal impact the rule may have on businesses:

The amendments to this rule do not create an impact on businesses.

Michael R. Styler, Executive Director

The full text of this rule may be inspected, during regular business hours, at the Division of Administrative Rules, or at:

Natural Resources
Wildlife Resources
1594 W NORTH TEMPLE
SALT LAKE CITY, UT 84116-3154

Direct questions regarding this rule to:

• Staci Coons at the above address, by phone at 801-538-4718, by FAX at 801-538-4709, or by Internet E-mail at stacicoons@utah.gov

Interested persons may present their views on this rule by submitting written comments to the address above no later than 5:00 p.m. on:

11/02/2015

This rule may become effective on:

11/09/2015

Authorized by:

Gregory Sheehan, Director

R657. Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources.

R657-60. Aquatic Invasive Species Interdiction.

R657-60-1. Purpose and Authority.

(1) The purpose of this rule is to define procedures and regulations designed to prevent and control the spread of aquatic invasive species within the State of Utah.

(2) This rule is promulgated pursuant to authority granted to the Wildlife Board in Sections 23-27-401, 23-14-18, and 23-14-19.

 

R657-60-2. Definitions.

(1) Terms used in this rule are defined in Section 23-13-2 and 23-27-[101.]102.

(2) In addition:

(a) "Conveyance" means a terrestrial or aquatic vehicle, including a vessel, or a vehicle part that may carry or contain a Dreissena mussel.

(b) "Decontaminate" or "Decontaminated" means to comply with one of the following methods:

(i) [Self]If no adult mussels are attached to the conveyance after exiting the water body, an owner or operator may self-decontaminate equipment or a conveyance that has been in an infested water in the previous 30 days by:

(A) removing all plants, fish, [mussels ]and mud from the equipment or conveyance;

(B) draining all water from the equipment or conveyance, including water held in ballast tanks, bilges, livewells, and motors; and

(C) drying the equipment or conveyance for no less than 7 days in June, July and August;18 days in September, October, November, March, April and May; 30 days in December, January and February; or expose the equipment or conveyance to sub-freezing temperatures for 72 consecutive hours; or

(ii) Professionally decontaminate equipment or a conveyance that has been in an infested water in the previous 30 days by:

(A) Using a professional decontamination service approved by the division to apply scalding water (140 degrees Fahrenheit) to completely wash the equipment or conveyance and flush any areas where water is held, including ballast tanks, bilges, livewells, and motors[.]; or

(iii) Complying with all protocols identified in a certificate of registration.

(c) "Detected Water" or "Detected" means a water body, facility, or water supply system where the presence of a Dreissena mussel is indicated in two consecutive sampling events using visual identification or microscopy and the results of each sampling event is confirmed in two polymerase chain reaction tests, each conducted at independent laboratories.

(d) "Dreissena mussel" means a mussel of the genus Dreissena at any life stage, including a zebra mussel, a quagga mussel and a Conrad's false mussel.

(e) "Controlling entity" means the owner, operator, or manager of a water body, facility, or a water supply system.

(f) "Equipment" means an article, tool, implement, or device capable of carrying or containing water or Dreissena mussel.

(g) "Facility" means a structure that is located within or adjacent to a water body.

(h) "Infested Water" or "Infested" means a water body, facility, water supply system, or geographic region where the presence of multiple age classes of attached Dreissena mussels is indicated in two or more consecutive sampling events using visual detection or microscopy and the result of each sampling event is confirmed in two polymerase chain reaction tests, each conducted at independent laboratories.

(i) "Juvenile or adult Dreissena mussel" means a macroscopic Dreissena mussel that is not a veliger.

(j) "Suspected Water" or "Suspected" means a water body, facility, or water supply system where the presence of a Dreissena mussel is indicated through a single sampling event using visual identification or microscopy and the result of that sampling event is confirmed in two independent polymerase chain reaction tests, each conducted at independent laboratories.

(k) "Veliger" means a microscopic, planktonic larva of Dreissena mussel.

(l) "Vessel" means every type of watercraft used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water.

(m) "Water body" means natural or impounded surface water, including a stream, river, spring, lake, reservoir, pond, wetland, tank, and fountain.

(n) "Water supply system" means a system that treats, conveys, or distributes water for irrigation, industrial, wastewater treatment, or culinary use, including a pump, canal, ditch or, pipeline.

(o) "Water supply system" does not include a water body.

 

R657-60-5. Transportation of Equipment and Conveyances That Have Been in Waters Containing Dreissena Mussels.

(1) The owner, operator, or possessor of any equipment or conveyance that has been in an infested water or in any other water subject to a closure order under R657-60-8 or control plan under R657-60-9 that requires decontamination of conveyances and equipment upon leaving the water shall:

(a) immediately drain all water from the equipment or conveyance at the take out site, including water held in ballast tanks, bilges, livewells, motors, and other areas of containment; and

(b) immediately inspect the interior and exterior of the equipment or conveyance at the take out site for the presence of Dreissena mussels.

(2) If all water in the equipment or conveyance is drained and the inspection undertaken pursuant to Subsection (1)(b) reveals the equipment and conveyance are free from mussels or shelled organisms, fish, plants and mud, the equipment and conveyance may be transported in or through the state directly from the take out site to the location where it will be:

(a)[(i) professionally] decontaminated; or

[(ii) stored and self-decontaminated; or

] (b) temporarily stored and subsequently returned to the same water body and take out site as provided in Subsection (5).

(3) If all the water in the equipment or conveyance is not drained or the inspection undertaken pursuant to Subsection (1)(b) reveals the equipment or conveyance has attached mussels or shelled organisms, fish, plants, or mud, the equipment and conveyance shall not be moved from the take out site until the division is contacted and written or electronic authorization received to move the equipment or conveyance to a designated location for professional decontamination.

(4) Except as provided in Subsection (5), a person shall not place any equipment or conveyance into a water body or water supply system in the state without first decontaminating the equipment and conveyance when the equipment or conveyance in the previous 30 days has been in:

(a) an infested water; or

(b) other water body or water supply system subject to a closure order under R657-60-8 or control plan under R657-60-9 that requires decontamination of conveyances and equipment upon leaving the water.

(5) Decontamination is not required when a conveyance or equipment is removed from an infested water or other water body subject to decontamination requirements, provided the conveyance and equipment is:

(a) inspected and drained at the take out site, and is free from attached mussels, shelled organisms, fish, plants, and mud as required in Subsections (1) and (2);

(b) returned to the same water body and launched at the same take out site; and

(c) not placed in or on any other Utah water body in the interim without first being decontaminated.

(6)(a) Division personnel may provide the operator of a vessel leaving an infested water, or any water subject to a closure order under R657-60-8 or control plan under R657-60-9, with an inspection certification indicating the date which that vessel left the water body.

(b) An individual who receives a certification of inspection from the division must retain that certification of inspection until:

(i) the operator returns to the same body of water and receives a new certification of inspection upon leaving the water body;

(ii) the operator completes a certification of decontamination; or

(iii) the operator receives a professional decontamination certificate.

 

R657-60-6. Certification of Inspection; Certification of Decontamination ; Certificate of Registration to Perform Decontamination .

(1) The owner, operator or possessor of a vessel desiring to launch on a water body in Utah must:

(a ) present an inspection certificate to division personnel if required; and

(b) verify the vessel and any launching device, in the previous 30 days, have not been in an infested water or in any other water subject to closure order under R657-60-8 or control plan under R[656]657-60-9 that requires decontamination of conveyances and equipment upon leaving the water; or

(b) certify the vessel and launching device have been decontaminated.

(2) Certification of decontamination is satisfied by:

(a) previously completing self-decontamination since the vessel and launching device were last in a water described in Subsection (1)([a]b) and completely filling out and dating a decontamination certification form which can be obtained from the division; or

(b) providing a signed and dated certificate by a division approved professional decontamination service verifying the vessel and launching device were professionally decontaminated since the vessel and launching device were last in a water described in Subsection (1)([a]b)[.]; or

([3]c) complying with the terms identified in a certificate of registration issued for alternative decontamination measures.

(3) A certificate of registration to complete alternate forms of decontamination may be issued to an individual who:

(a) operates conveyances as a part of their business;

(b) whose conveyances cannot be decontaminated using self decontamination or professional decontamination as defined in R657-60-2(b)(i) and (ii).

(4) Both the decontamination certification form and the professional decontamination certificate, where applicable, must be signed and placed in open view in the window of the launching vehicle prior to launching or placing the vessel in a body of water.

([4]5)(a) It is unlawful under Section 76-8-504 to knowing falsify a decontamination certification form.

(b) It is unlawful under Section 23-13-11(2) to alter or destroy a certificate of inspection prior to completing a decontamination certification form.

(c) The division may suspend, revoke, or terminate a certificate of registration if the business entity or an employee thereof has violated a term of this rule, the Wildlife Resources Code, or a certificate of registration.

 

R657-60-7. Wildlife Board Designations of Infested Waters.

(1) The Wildlife Board may designate a geographic area, water body, facility, or water supply system as Infested with Dreissena mussels pursuant to Section 23-27-102 and 23-27-401 without taking the proposal to or receiving recommendations from the regional advisory councils.

(2) The Wildlife Board may designate a particular water body, facility, or water supply system within the state as Infested with Dreissena mussels when sampling indicates the water body, facility, or water supply system meets the minimum criteria for an Infested Water as defined in this rule.

(3) The Wildlife Board may designate a particular water body, facility, or water supply system outside the state as Infested with Dreissena mussels when it has credible evidence suggesting the presence of a Dreissena mussel in that water body, facility, or water supply system.

(4) Where the number of Infested Waters in a particular area is numerous or growing, or where surveillance activities or infestation containment actions are deficient, the Wildlife Board may designate geographic areas as Infested with Dreissena mussels.

(5) The following water bodies and geographic areas are classified as infested:

(a) all coastal and inland waters in:

(i) Colorado;

(ii) California;

(iii) Nevada;

(iv) Arizona;

(v) all states east of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico;

(vi) the provinces of Ontario and Quebec Canada; and

(vii) Mexico;

(b) Lake Powell and that portion of the:

(i) Colorado River [between Lake Powell and Spanish Bottoms in Canyonlands]within the boundaries of Glen Canyon National [Park]Recreation Area;

(ii) Escalante River between Lake Powell and the Coyote Creek confluence;

(iii) Dirty Devil River between Lake Powell and the Highway 95 bridge; and

(iv) San Juan River between Lake Powell and Clay Hills Crossing; and

(c) other waters established by the Wildlife Board and published on the DWR website.

(6) The Wildlife Board may remove an infested classification if:

(a) the division samples the affected water body for seven (7) consecutive years without a single sampling event producing evidence sufficient to satisfy the criteria for a "suspected" classification, as defined in this rule; or

(b) the controlling entity eradicates all Dreissena mussels at the water body, facility, or water supply system through chemical or biological treatments, desiccation, or freezing, and the division verifies in writing that Dreissena mussels are no longer present.

 

R657-60-8. Closure Order for a Water Body, Facility, or Water Supply System.

(1)(a) The division may classify a water body, facility, or water supply system as suspected or detected if it meets the minimum criteria for suspected or detected, as defined in this rule.

(b) If the division classifies a water body, facility, or water supply system as either suspected or detected, the division director or designee may, with the concurrence of the executive director, issue an order closing the water body, facility, or water supply system to the introduction or removal of conveyances or equipment.

(c) The director shall consult with the controlling entity of the water body, facility, or water supply system when determining the scope, duration, level and type of closure that will be imposed in order to avoid or minimize disruption of economic and recreational activities.

(d) A closure order may;

(i) close the water entirely to conveyances and equipment;

(ii) authorize the introduction and removal of conveyances and equipment subject to the decontamination requirements in R657-60-2(2)(b) and R657-60-5; or

(iii) impose any other condition or restriction necessary to prevent the movement of Dreissena mussels into or out of the subject water.

(iv) a closure order may not restrict the flow of water without the approval of the controlling entity.

(2)(a) A closure order issued pursuant to Subsection (1) shall be in writing and identify the:

(i) water body, facility, or water supply system subject to the closure order;

(ii) nature and scope of the closure or restrictions;

(iii) reasons for the closure or restrictions;

(iv) conditions upon which the order may be terminated or modified; and

(v) sources for receiving updated information on the presence of Dreissena mussels and closure order.

(b) The closure order shall be mailed, electronically transmitted, or hand delivered to:

(i) the controlling entity of the water body, facility, or water supply system;

and

(ii) any governmental agency or private entity known to have economic, political, or recreational interests significantly impacted by the closure order; and

(iii) any person or entity requesting a copy of the order.

(c) The closure order or its substance shall further be:

(i) posted on the division's web page; and

(ii) published in a newspaper of general circulation in the state of Utah or the affected area.

(3)(a) If a closure order lasts longer than seven days, the division shall provide the controlling entity and post on its web page a written update every 10 days on its efforts to address the Dreissena mussel infestation.

(b) The 10 day update notice cycle will continue for the duration of the closure order.

(4)(a) Notwithstanding the closure authority in Subsection (1), the division may not unilaterally close or restrict a suspected or detected water supply system where the controlling entity has prepared and implemented a control plan in cooperation with the division that effectively controls the spread of Dreissena mussels from the water supply system.

(b) The control plan shall comply with the requirements in R657-60-9.

(5) Except as authorized by the Division in writing, a person may not violate any provision of a closure order.

(6) A closure order or control plan shall remain effective so long as the water body, water supply system, or facility remains classified as suspected or detected.

(7) The director or his designee may remove a Suspected classification if:

(a) the division samples the affected water body for three (3) consecutive years without a single sampling event producing evidence sufficient to satisfy the criteria for a "suspected" classification, as defined in this rule; or

(b) the controlling entity eradicates all Dreissena mussels at the water body, facility, or water supply system through chemical or biological treatments, desiccation, or freezing, and the division verifies that Dreissena mussels are no longer present .[; or]

(8) The director or his designee may remove a detected classification if:

(a) the division samples the affected water body for five (5) consecutive years without a single sampling event producing evidence sufficient to satisfy the criteria for a "suspected" classification, as defined in this rule; or

(b) the controlling entity eradicates all Dreissena mussels at the water body, facility, or water supply system through chemical or biological treatments, desiccation, or freezing, and the division verifies that Dreissena mussels are no longer present.

 

R657-60-11. Conveyance or Equipment Detainment.

(1) To eradicate and prevent the infestation of a Dreissena mussel, the division may:

(a) [temporary]temporarily stop, detain, inspect, and impound a conveyance or equipment that the division reasonably believes is in violation of Section 23-27-201 or R657-60-5;

(b) order a person to decontaminate a conveyance or equipment that the division reasonably believes is in violation of Section 23-227-201 or R657-60-5.

(2) The division, a port-of-entry agent or a peace officer may detain or impound a conveyance or equipment if:

(a) the division, agent, or peace officer reasonably believes that the person transporting the conveyance or equipment is in violation of Section 23-27-201 or R657-60-5.

(3) The detainment or impoundment authorized by Subsection (2) may continue for:

(a) up to five days; or

(b) the period of time necessary to:

(i) decontaminate the conveyance or equipment; and

(ii) ensure that a Dreissena mussel is not living on or in the conveyance or equipment.

 

KEY: fish, wildlife, wildlife law

Date of Enactment or Last Substantive Amendment: [June 24, 2014]2015

Notice of Continuation: August 5, 2013

Authorizing, and Implemented or Interpreted Law: 23-27-401; 23-14-18; 23-14-19