Cape County, Department of Conservation close to agreement on managing, stocking lakes

Anglers of the lakes at Cape County Park North and South may be getting a few more bites next year.

Cape Girardeau County and the Missouri Department of Conservation are close to entering into a 25-year agreement that will see that the lakes at both parks are healthy and fully stocked with fish.

According to Commissioner Jay Purcell, who oversees the parks department, the county has been in talks since February with the Department of Conservation about an agreement.

Chris Kennedy, a fisheries management biologist with the department, said every indicator is that an agreement will be in place by the winter and that the department would begin management of the lakes in the spring. The county parks department is currently responsible for stocking and maintaining the lakes.

The Department of Conservation's responsibilities would be to provide a management plan for the fishery resources of the lakes, provide periodic fish community surveys and analyses, keep populations of fish at healthy levels by stocking the lakes and managing habitats, enforce fishing rules and regulations and provide and maintain signs.

Jim Compas of Fruitland casts a line into the lake Monday at Cape Girardeau County Park South. Compas said he fishes there about once a month now but used to fish three times a week. "Ten years ago I could catch two dozen bass just walking around," he said. "Then I would do the same at the north lake." The fish are fewer and smaller now, he said. "Today I didn't waste my time at the other lake." (Fred Lynch)

Kennedy said the department would also assist the county with any vegetation problems, such as algae, which often impedes anglers.

The county has not had the money to stock the lakes in recent years. The Department of Conservation will use regular state funds and money from fishing licenses to pay for the program.

The agreement would be similar to those between the city of Jackson and the department, which has managed Rotary Lake there since 1994 and formed another agreement with the city to manage Litz Lake in 2010.

Shane West Anderson, Jackson's parks and recreation director, said the city has been pleased with the arrangement.

"It's a win-win. We both want the public to have a good fishing experience, and the agreement makes that possible," Anderson said.

In Jackson's lakes, Anderson said, the department has helped address the problem of too many Canada geese by planting certain types of vegetation and that he can always depend on the department if he has a concern with water quality or an invasive species.

Kennedy said the lakes at the county parks have decent populations of largemouth bass, bluegill and crappie. He said the department would likely focus first on stocking the lakes with channel catfish.

"Channel catfish populations are slowly maintained through stocking over time because they have a hard time reproducing due to competition," he said. "We'll restock on an annual basis to ensure people can catch those."

According to Purcell, the obligations the county has to take care of the parks and the lakes won't change.

Per the pending agreement, the county would still provide routine maintenance to the parks.

The county will not pay the Department of Conservation for the work, Purcell said. Funding for the lakes management would come from the department.

Kennedy said similar agreements between the department and cities have so far proved to be successful in fulfilling the department's mission of reaching out to the public and providing fishing opportunities.

"To me it's a no-brainer," he said. "It's a wonderful opportunity for the state to provide the county with a good resource for fishing in the area."

eragan@semissourian.com

388-3627

Pertinent addresses:

2302 County Park Drive, Cape Girardeau, MO

1 Barton Square, Jackson, MO