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Local officials press DNR on Beaver Dam Lake phosphorus; request experimental carp-removal study
Summary
Committee members discussed a recent meeting with DNR fisheries leadership and the role of rough fish (carp) removal in phosphorus trends; the committee requested a mass-balance study and a public demonstration showing commercial removal quantities.
Committee members reported a recent meeting with Wisconsin DNR fisheries staff about phosphorus trends in Beaver Dam Lake and proposed actions on rough fish (carp).
A committee member said DNR data show total phosphorus in early-season samples dropped from about 0.5 mg/L in 2005 to about 0.15 mg/L by 2017, then rose to roughly 0.4 mg/L by 2025. The member said rough fish removal that occurred through about 2017 corresponded with the earlier downward trend and that stopping removal may be linked to the later increase in phosphorus.
The committee asked DNR fisheries leadership for two near-term items: (1) an experimental contract to quantify the lake’s phosphorus mass balance and determine whether current mass is a problem; and (2) a public demonstration or netting to show what a large commercial removal (for example, 50,000 pounds) of carp looks like to help the public understand scale and impacts.
Committee members said DNR indicated it would respond within a month to requests so contractors can be engaged before the warm-season spawning period. The committee also discussed the role of curly-leaf pondweed die-off and other seasonal vegetation effects on reactive phosphorus, and noted interest in continued monitoring and in demonstrating how rough-fish biomass compares to desirable sportfish density.
