how bad is an active alert?

My dog is trained to detect various (non nosework) scents. I think it would be fun to start him on some of the nosework scents and join a club. The problem is that I've never bothered to stop him from doing an active alert. He dog digs, paws, mouths and picks up and chews the scent source. Would this disqualify him from participating in nosework events? Would it be considered a flaw?