CPW expands boat inspections and ports of entry as part of statewide ANS protection effort

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) officials told a Colorado Department of Agriculture training that the state's aquatic nuisance species (ANS) program has grown into one of the nation's largest boat-inspection efforts and is adding ports-of-entry and infrastructure improvements to reduce introductions.

"We do about 430,000 boat inspections every single year," said Robert Walters, invasive species program manager for CPW, describing the program's scale and its core mission to protect wildlife, recreation and water infrastructure. Walters said CPW operates 79 inspection stations across Colorado and decontaminates more than 30,000 boats annually.

Walters said the program's revenues from the ANS stamp — a $25 fee for Colorado residents and $50 for nonresidents — generate roughly $1,900,000 a year, while annual expenses run around $10,000,000. He said state legislators in recent years authorized inspections at ports of entry and other roadside locations; CPW now runs full-time port-of-entry operations at five locations, including Loma and Cortez.

"We intercepted 57 boats at Loma last year that had invasive mussels on them," Walters said, noting that the majority of those boats originated from Lake Powell. He also described a new $600,000 agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to improve traffic patterns and safety at the busy Loma port-of-entry.

CPW officials said inspections focus on high-risk boats (out-of-state and boats recently launched on known-positive waters), and emphasized both inspection capacity and public outreach campaigns encouraging boaters to "clean, drain and dry" equipment. Walters said the program balances user convenience with protection of high-risk assets, and that outreach efforts aim to change behavior among nonmotorized as well as motorized boaters.

Next steps described at the training include continuing to staff and equip inspection stations, refining port-of-entry traffic controls, and coordinating with federal and local partners on education and enforcement.