Story originally printed in the Tomah Journal or online at www.tomahjournal.com
Published - Sunday, June 29, 2008
Lake plan approved
The City of Tomah Lake Committee approved a management plan for Lake Tomah on Tuesday with a few revisions.
Several changes were made to the written plan that the Lake Committee will present to the City Council in August. Some changes include the addition of more in-depth cost estimates and phase outlines on the report. The final authorization will still require final approval once the additions are added to the written plan. One change was a possible cost to the city for fish clean-up efforts.
“The city will have to put forth some resources to monitor the dam and for fish clean up,” Wisconsin Department of Resources (WDNR) Watershed Program Specialist Dan Helsel said. “If the carp go to a part of the lake that doesn’t matter, they decompose and it is fine. A plan for fish pickup would only be needed if they become a nuisance to property owners.”
The potential cost of the city for fish clean up is $5,000, but that could change if a shoreline restoration grant is awarded for the project. The costs would include dumpster use and tipping fees. Public Works Director Ken Patterson said that costs of a drawdown are already in the Lake Maintenance Budget. The committee said that the costs for drawdown are not to exceed $3,000.
Phase one of the operations will be a carp eradication project, and phase two will focus on shore restoration. A city cost for an aquatic invasive plant program, which will include putting up signs, may cost the city donated labor.
The WDNR will pick up a majority of the project costs, including fish eradication, and the stocking of fisheries. When printed and approved, the plan will be given to city council members as soon as possible, Lake Committee chair Joe McDaniel said.
The planning sessions for the project began in January, and discussions on a restoration plan for Lake Tomah began in May of 2007, McDaniel said, after a large carp population damaged the quality of the lake.
All stories copyright 2006 Tomah Journal and other attributed sources.