Fong Secures $5 Million to Combat Invasive Golden Mussels in Energy and Water Funding Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Vince Fong (CA-20) today announced he successfully secured $5 million in Community Project Funding for the San Joaquin Valley Golden Mussel Watercraft Inspection Program in the FY2027 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill.

This legislation was advanced by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies. It now moves to the full House Appropriations Committee for consideration.

The funding would create a regional watercraft inspection and prevention program to protect Central Valley water infrastructure from invasive golden mussels, a rapidly spreading species that can devastate reservoirs, canals, and conveyance systems, disrupt water delivery, and drive-up costs.

"Water is the lifeblood of the Central Valley, and we cannot allow an invasive species to jeopardize the infrastructure that our farmers, families, and communities rely on every day," said Vince Fong. "The growing threat posed by the golden mussel demands urgent action. This investment confronts this problem head on by strengthening early detection, expanding monitoring capabilities, and equipping local agencies with the tools needed to stop this invasive species."

The program will support facility upgrades and decontamination equipment at Millerton Lake, Pine Flat Reservoir, Lake Kaweah, Success Lake, and Lake Isabella, and will protect critical systems including Friant Dam, the Friant-Kern Canal, and over 25 irrigation districts supplying water to over 1 million acres of farmland and over 1 million Central Valley residents.

Golden mussels - native to China and Southeast Asia - were first detected in North America in October 2024 in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Since then, they have spread rapidly throughout the state and now pose a direct threat to the Central Valley. The species blocks pipes, clogs water intakes and fish screens, and disrupts water supplies and agricultural irrigation.

Their impacts can devastate infrastructure, with a single female golden mussel able to produce up to a million offspring each year. A $100 million floodgate completed just last year has already been clogged by the mussels in San Joaquin County, requiring removal. San Joaquin County has declared a local emergency over the threat.