Home / Environment / US Offers $200K to Stop Invasive Mussels
US Offers $200K to Stop Invasive Mussels
4 Mar
Summary
- US government offers cash prizes up to $200,000.
- Invasive species cost over $1 billion annually.
- Competition seeks solutions for ballast water threats.
The U.S. government has launched a significant initiative, offering substantial cash rewards of up to $200,000 to spur the development of solutions against invasive aquatic species. These harmful organisms inflict over $1 billion in costs each year across the nation.
The Bureau of Reclamation's "Halt the Hitchhiker: Invasive Species Challenge" specifically targets preventing the spread of species like quagga and zebra mussels. These invaders hitch rides on boats, often trapped in small amounts of ballast water, and can severely damage water infrastructure.
The competition unfolds in three phases, with escalating prize money. Initial rounds offer up to $25,000 for concept development, followed by up to $50,000 for engineered design proposals. The final stage awards up to $125,000 for prototype development and testing.
This challenge is open to all technical backgrounds and aims to foster groundbreaking decontamination or exclusion methods. The Bureau of Reclamation is collaborating with yet2 to manage the competition, encouraging broad participation to protect water systems from costly ecological and economic damage.
