As California Governor Gavin Newsom declares a state of emergency ahead of what's predicted to be a historic El Nino storm season, Stockton officials say a familiar foe could threaten key flood control infrastructure — the Golden Mussel.
First detected in North American at the Port of Stockton in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in late 2024, golden mussels have encrusted onto gates, pumps, and levees.
Martha Volkoff with the Department of Fish and Wildlife says the freshwater mollusk can be highly resistant.
"They may only be the size of a fingernail," said Volkoff, "but they form dense clusters of these hard-shelled organisms that essentially can act like cement and can block small diameter pipe."
A panel of government and non profit agencies took a boat tour of nearby waterways organized by the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors. The tour included a look at Stockton’s Smith Canal floodgate that helps protect around 8,000 property owners. Democratic Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom saw divers actively scraping golden mussels off just to get it to close properly.
"The golden mussels are really kind of marking their territory and that is concerning and it should be concerning for all of us," said Ransom.
Ransom is urging Governor Gavin Newsom to sign the "Golden Mussel Response Act" to streamline local cleanup. California's budget includes $6 million in one time funding to combat the infestation.