Lake Musconetcong Clean-Up 7-16

[MattK]

Saw this on my Facebook feed today. Anyone planning on helping out?

[AndyS]

Thanx for posting !

[icebadger]

man if there is one thing that lake does not need is another aquatic weed invasion. it's a shallow lake and that stuff will choke the place in no time.from what i've heard that plant is tough.i hope some people have the time and can help out the cause,thank you matt for bringing this to our attention.

[MattK]

Originally Posted by icebadger

man if there is one thing that lake does not need is another aquatic weed invasion. it's a shallow lake and that stuff will choke the place in no time.from what i've heard that plant is tough.i hope some people have the time and can help out the cause,thank you matt for bringing this to our attention.

That lake really does need a lot of love. I live within walking distance from it and its so convenient to drop my boat in there, but by June its too weedy to drop my boat in.

It could be a really nice lake to enjoy, but from what I understand, it needs a lot more attention than just weed pulling.

[NJSquatch]

Originally Posted by icebadger

man if there is one thing that lake does not need is another aquatic weed invasion. it's a shallow lake and that stuff will choke the place in no time.from what i've heard that plant is tough.i hope some people have the time and can help out the cause,thank you matt for bringing this to our attention.

I have been out there in early spring and the whole eastern half of the lake had waterchestnut sprouts coming up. Once these things get into an ecosystem they are very difficult to remove and will take over and choke out an entire shallow lake in a couple of years. Only effective way to remove them is by hand pulling the plant by the roots.

With this being next door the KDC and LHF run the water scouts every year looking for chestnuts in Hopatcong. They have found them in Liffy Island and the Canal area over the past few years. Water Scout Project Info

Can't fish or boat through this stuff! Be diligent about removing vegetation from your boat.

[Bruce Litton]

I think it needs to be drained and dredged. Start over. Those water chestnuts get in the mud and are good for 12 years to sprout again, so no matter the chemical or even the hand pulling treatments, they're in there. It's a fantastic bass and pickerel lake--when healthy, which does include some vegetation, but those water chestnuts will choke a lake to death--make it anoxic. What other lake is that many acres, all five-feet deep, so with appropriate aquatic vegetation, fish habitat everywhere?