Game and Fish prepares to implement new boat inspection rules

Starting next year, all boats that enter Wyoming will have to be inspected, to make sure they’re not carrying any aquatic invasive species.

Until now, boats had to be inspected if they passed by an open inspection station, or if they had been in a body of water that was known to host invasive species. But Beth Bear with the Game and Fish Department says under that system, many boats went un-checked.

Bear says Game and Fish is trying to make it easy for boat owners to comply with the new rules.

“We’ll set up probably 10 to 14 inspection stations at the big entrances into the state and some smaller routes where we think we might get out-of-state traffic,” Bear said.

She says they’ll also allow marinas and a variety of state agencies to do inspections.

Game and Fish is hosting three public meetings this week to discuss how best to implement the new rules.