Iowa boaters must ‘Clean, Drain & Dry’ or face up to a $500 fine

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Des Moines, IA-  With warm weather forecast for Memorial Day weekend, thousands of boaters will be taking to Iowa’s waterways.

Kim Bogenschutz, aquatic invasive species program coordinator for the Iowa DNR tells Radio Iowa that all boaters are urged to “Clean, Drain, and Dry” their boats to protect Iowa’s waterways from “aquatic hitchhikers.”

“Clean off all of their equipment of plants and mud and any zebra mussels that might be on them,” Bogenschutz says. “Drain all the water because that can be plant parts or little zebra mussels in the water. And then before going to another water body, just let everything dry out for five days or if they’re gonna go to another water body right away, then they need to wash it off.”

Bogenschutz says it’s not just a suggestion, it’s the law.

“Our conservation officers are watching and they can see if there’s a boat going down the road with vegetation hanging off of it or if their drain plug is not removed,” Bogenschutz says. “They do write tickets and it’s a $500 fine if you’re caught with vegetation or aquatic invasive species or a $75 fine if your drain plug is in.”