The regional water district that delivers water to Richardson would keep paying federal scientists to look for invasive mussels in its lakes under an agreement on its board's consent agenda Thursday.
The North Texas Municipal Water District board meets at 2 p.m. Oct. 22 at the district's offices, 501 E. Brown St. in Wylie. The public can attend in person, and the agenda lists a call-in line for listening.
Watching for mussels
The joint funding agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey totals $368,800. The district's share is $308,280, or 84%, paid from its 2026-27 operating budget, and the federal agency covers the remaining $60,520.
According to the staff summary, adult zebra mussels turned up in Lake Texoma in 2009 and have since been found in the Lavon Lake watershed, and they are a worry for the newer Bois d'Arc Lake. The mussels can fasten onto gates, screens, pipes and valves and get in the way of moving and treating water, the district says.
Early detection is meant to guide the district's operations, planning and maintenance.
Under the agreement, the USGS would test for zebra and quagga mussels at the larval, juvenile and adult stages and track how they spread in the region.
The deal also pays to keep stream gauges running on Bois d'Arc Creek at FM 271, FM 100, FM 409 and Highway 56, a lake-level gauge at the Bois d'Arc dam and water quality equipment at two of those crossings. The district says that data is required by the state water right and federal permit for the lake.
The district has worked with the USGS on mussel monitoring since 2009 and on Bois d'Arc Creek measurements since 2006.