SALT LAKE CITY-Per Utah State Division of Wildlife Resources officials Tuesday, 54 boaters were cited for quagga mussel violations over Memorial Day weekend.

These citations come as officials are seeking to eliminate “the STD of the sea.”

Between Friday and Monday, reports attest that officials performed 142 decontaminations at more than 40 different checkpoints in the state.

A large portion of the boats inspected were in the Lake Powell area where quaggas have been a perpetual problem.

Wildlife officials say 42 of the 54 citations issued to boaters were administered at Lake Powell.

This is because they either did not stop for mandatory inspections or they transported their boats with their plugs still in.

Quaggas are an issue because they alter food webs in bodies of water by removing plankton. Furthermore, they clog water-intake pipes and other water infrastructure. This can cause extensive damages.

This invasive species is usually spread to other bodies of water via boats and other watercraft.

A Utah bill going into effect in July calls for out-of-state boaters to pay $20 each time they launch a boat into a Utah body of water. This money is to go toward measures preventing quaggas from spreading.

All boat owners will also be required to complete an online education course regarding how to prevent those species from spreading. They must then show proof the course has been completed before they are allowed to launch boats into a Utah body of water.

Utah lawmakers have also passed a resolution which urges the National Park Service and other federal entities to “prevent the spread of invasive quagga mussels and improve the inspection and decontamination for all watercraft leaving Lake Powell.”

In a prepared statement issued Tuesday, DWR’s Aquatic Invasive Species Operations team Sgt. Krystal Tucker confirmed the importance for all boaters to abide by these laws which are set up to prevent this invasive species’ spread.