SHOREWOOD, Minn. (AP) — It's the least wonderful time of the year for zebra mussels at Christmas Lake.

The Department of Natural Resources on Friday pumped 1,000 pounds of a special chemical to kill off any remaining zebra mussels in Christmas Lake, about 20 miles southwest of Minneapolis. The chemical dubbed potash doesn't harm fish but interferes with zebra mussels' breathing.

Friday's treatment was just the third time potassium chloride has been used to control the invasive species in the U.S. The DNR had to get special permission from the federal government to use it at Christmas Lake

The DNR says if the application succeeds, it will be the first time zebra mussels have been eradicated from a Minnesota lake.

 

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