Invasive Species Inspections Continue as Shutdown Looms

Jake Burbach is getting a crash course in state politics during his summer internship with Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Burbach attends North Dakota State University and had planned to spend his summer inspecting boats for invasive species at boat accesses around the Metro area. Instead, he is preparing to turn in his gear and uniform.

“We got a letter saying we’ll have to turn in all of our stuff on Thursday if a shutdown happens,” he said.

On Monday Burbach was at the public access on Gray’s Bay checking watercraft for zebra mussels and other aquatic hitchhikers. One of those boats belonged to John Hunt of Maple Grove, who fishes Lake Minnetonka often.

“I believe the government needs to live within its means,” Hunt said. “If the government shuts down, I don’t have a problem with it.”

Unless state legislators and Governor Dayton reach a budget agreement by Friday, Burdach and just about everyone else working for the DNR will be out of the job and go without pay until a deal is brokered.

If a shutdown does happen, it’s unlikely most DNR services—to include invasive species inspections and conservation enforcement—will be declared “essential,” meaning they will halt until a biennial budget is signed.

Meanwhile, Burbach and other invasive species inspectors will continue their work and closely monitor developments coming out of St. Paul.