Alberta Watercraft Inspections, 2025

Boat inspection and hot water wash in
Prince Albert National Park this past summer.

Alberta has long inspected water-craft to prevent the spread of Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS). While there are several AIS (there is a comprehensive pocket-guide here), water-craft inspections are particularly focused on preventing the introduction of quagga and zebra mussels to Alberta.

In June of 2025, all boats crossing Alberta’s southern and eastern borders required inspection (even if the nearest inspection station was closed). Boats crossing the northern of western borders only required inspections if passing an open inspection station. The inspection process is set out here.

This new requirement (along with a $4200 fine for failing to stop at an open station, up from $324 in 2023) caused some raised eyebrows in the paddling community. I thought some context might be of interest to paddlers so I pulled together the publicly available data. 

 

The short of it is, in 2025:

 

·      21,995 watercraft were inspected at 11 stations

·      46.5% (so about 10,230) of inspected boats were non-motorized 

·      13 mussel-fouled boats were identified (1 sailboat and 12 motorized)

·      875 boats were hot-water washed due to concerns about possible contamination

·      358 warnings and 14 fines for failing to stop at an inspection station were issued

 

The table below presents the comparative data I found find from 2019 to 2025.

Generally speaking, non-motorized boats have a lower risk of mussel fouling because (1) there are fewer places for mussels to hide and (2) non-motorized boats are not typically left in the water long enough for a colony to become established. 

 

Of the 171 mussel-fouled boats identified between 2017 and 2025, only one (0.58%) was a kayak. That said, the sheer number of non-motorized boats crossing the border each year does represent a significant risk since a single female mussel can produce 1 million eggs in a year.