PAGE 12 - February 6, 2013
The Newscaster/Nature Coast News
Draw Down Offered as "Tool" For
Lake Rousseau Managment
Last Thursday Terry K Sullivan, Regional Biologist/Invasive Plants with the Florida
This week's picture of the week. Shawn Stephen of Yankeetown with a 3.4lb Sea Trout and a
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) met with a group of concerned citizens at
slot Redfish caught on a live shrimp north of Yankeetown in a creek.
Lake Rousseau RV Park. The meeting was to discuss the Lake Rousseau Aquatic Plant Manage-
Safety in the use of the chemicals was discussed when eating fish from the lake.
ment which Sullivan leads. Photo & story by Sally Price.
Shawn Stephenson, former long time crabber said crabs would start migrating west to the
The audience was very interested in alternatives to the present herbicide program
gulf from his traps when herbicides were applied. It was said that the lowerWithlacoochee
and only one or two individuals were supportive of continuation of the current management
River is like a barren desert with no aquatic plants when historically people had to pull grass
program. Mr. John Fuchs requested that FWC provide information on brand and quantity of
out to use their boatslips to get their boats in.
herbicides used on the lake. Officials were questioned about program costs for Lake Rous-
One attendee inquired if the old river channel was historic habitat for manatees.
seau and attendees were advised that annual costs ranged from the current $102,000 budget
FWC advised that is was and when the locks were operational they sometimes migrated into
to as high as $500,000.00.
the lake for brief periods. FWC was resistant to the idea of using manatees as a management
Public speakers acknowledged the complexity of issues, but challenged FWC offi-
tool for invasive plants for a variety of reasons; their endangered status and probable regula-
cials to contract for a feasibility study which would examine drawn down as a management
tory barriers appeared very high on the list.
tool for Lake Rousseau. The lake has never been fully drawn down as a management tool
Lake Rousseau is approximately 3500 acres formed around 1910 when the Withla-
in its 100+ years of existence. Comparatively, invasive plant management programs for the
coochee River dam was constructed by Camp Phosphate and eventually had a hydro electric
Rodman Reservoir do not involve herbicide treatments as the lake is drawn down on a three
plant run by Florida Power at the sight of the present main spillway. . The lake is about 10
year cycle. One FWC official was supportive of benefits that would accrue from use of draw
miles west of Dunnellon and 12 miles east of the Gulf.
down in context of fish populations.
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