The Russians are coming. Wait. There's no sneak attack. In this case, it's our water resource at Lake Casitas that is about to be destroyed by a tiny Russian invader, the Quagga mussel.

The Ukrainian mollusk probably arrived in the ballast water of ocean-going ships and made its first appearance in the Great Lakes region in 1989 just as the Cold War was ending. Billions of dollars have been spent in the northeast to maintain waterworks, power-generating stations and other water-environment facilities.

The mussel has now been found west of the Rocky Mountains in the Colorado River system and the news only gets worse. The tiny invader has now been found in San Diego County reservoirs and the entire length of the Colorado River Aqueduct. The mollusk is on the move.

How does this aquatic troublemaker get around? Without a doubt, the Quagga mussel hitchhikes on recreational boats that carry the animal attached to the hulls of watercraft, anchors, trailers and in with live bait. The microscopic larva can also be found in various parts of a boat's equipment such as the bilge, cooling system and wet wells for bait.

What does the invasion of the Quagga mussel mean to us and our water resource? Well, to start, if the invader is deposited into Lake Casitas, there is no known way to get rid of it after it arrives. One healthy female mussel can generate 1 million more mussels every year. Eventually, the mussels will cover most of the bottom surface of the lake, the dam and every hard surface or weed they can find. They can completely close off water pipes, clog the intake structures at the dam, damage pumps, cause overheating of boat motors, jam boats' steering mechanisms, cause mass bird kills from botulism and a stink you will never forget.

After being introduced to a body of water, the Quagga mussel feeds on plankton and algae in the water (except blue-green algae) and makes the water clearer. The plankton and algae that the mussels eat is the exact same food that is needed by fish fry and as the water gets more clear, sunlight penetrates deeper into the lake causing excessive weed growth. As the algae disappear, the fishery will also diminish rapidly. Lastly, the algae that is left is the blue-green algae and this is well-known for causing severe odor and taste problems. Along with these negative impacts, the Quagga mussel also excretes a high concentration of phosphorus that has a negative effect on water quality. In conclusion, once established, the entire ecology of the lake will be forever altered, the fishery will be lost and water rates will increase dramatically.

The time for action is right now to defend our water resource against this threat. We have no time to lose.

— Russ Baggerly, of Ojai, is president of the Casitas Municipal Water District board of directors, but his comments are his own and he does not write on behalf of the board.