Research scientist Brady Hirschfeld studies how to stop the rapid golden mussel invasion.
The patent-protected product being tested is zequanox, created first to kill other invasive zebra and quagga mussels. Now, it's being redeveloped and retested to root out the goldens, which are notoriously resilient and hard to kill.
"These mussels are ranked the top five worst invasive species on the planet, causing many billions of dollars of damage," Marrone said. "So we're really tackling a big problem. We're excited we can do that."
"We're alone. In fact, we're the only company, I think, in the world that's actually tackling invasive species in water," Marrone said.
How it works
Marrone noted that zequanox is biodegradable, with no impact on surrounding creatures and habitat.
The test subjects were collected in Stockton, and a local marina there will be the first site to test zequanox on golden mussels in the wild this fall.
"Eradication is, in my opinion, unthinkable. They're here to stay," said San Joaquin County Supervisor Mario Gardea. "It's about mitigation."
"Anything that touches our delta, anything that has to do with water is going to be affected," he said.
Marrone said the impact on community members could mean water flows being stopped due to infestations.
Next steps involve getting zequanox approved for use in golden mussels through the California Environmental Protection Agency and hoping to get this rolled out in local waterways next year, possibly sooner, if California approves an emergency use.
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