Important Lake Jackson meeting 02/03/15

[bman]

FWC is exploring spraying vegetation at Lake Jackson...

I can see the fishermen and ski boat crowd being for this and the Duck hunters being against it.

I have lived in Tallahassee about my life - except for my "lost years" in Atlanta From the 60's to early 90's Jackson was a SKI and bass fishing lake. I skipped a lot of school to hand out on the water There was some good hunting on the North end but it was never as good as out other lakes like Miccosukee or Iamonia.

Then it went dry several times of the last 10 years. The water came back a few years ago and the lake was still shallow so the hydrilla and pads grew in thick. With the food came the ducks. This last season it offered some of the best ringneck hunting in the area.

It is also a great bass fishing lake consistently producing big fish in our area.

I have mixed feelings about spraying the lake. For my uses its better the way it is. But it used to be the only ski/boater friendly lake in Tallahassee.

Balancing the needs and wants of the local community will not be easy. If you have a opinion show up and voice it

[micci_man]

You cannot make bass fishers and duck hunters agree on this, period.... it will have to be one or the other and it will boil down to which crowd has the most in attendance at ALL of the meetings especially any FWC commission meetings that I will bet won't be held anywhere near Tallahassee. I am praying that they will leave Miccosukee alone and quite draining it every 10 yrs. That is what has gotten the lake in the shape it is now with the vegetation but I still don't want them to do any spraying. JUST LEAVE IT ALONE!!!!!!

[grouperlips]

Please leave all the lakes alone. The grass is good for all fish and aquatic animals as well as the ducks who nibble. For evidence of how to destroy wildlife habitat just simply go to Central Florida where they spray constantly, the lakes become barren deserts in no time.

[cotton]

Management by he who yells the loudest. Must be the government.

[tin can]

As a bass fisherman I want it left alone. The fishing on Jackson is better than it's been in many years. However, I'm sure the recreational water sports crowd will want the vegetation done away with. But there will be three more very vocal groups attending these meetings. The water front home owners, who don't want the hunters, fishers, or recreational water sports people on the lake, but want open access to the lake for their boats, will be there. And, possibly the most vocal group, the "Naturalists" will be there. Keep in mind, there is a very expensive "Sea Wall and Culvert" along both sides of US 27 to keep the turtles from crossing over the highway. Then there is the most politically powerful group, the plantation owners, who think the lake ownership should revert back to them so they can cross fence the lake bottom again.

That said, The State has more than likely already decided what they are going to do. The public meetings will provide The State with insight about each group and be better equipped to present the project with the least resistance.

I'm thinking that in the future this thread will have to be moved to the Politics section.

[bman]

A reminder this is next Tuesday Night...

[Harmsway]

Tuesday 6:30. NW corner of Monroe and Fred George (behind Auto Xperts).

[Jose Gaspar]

When I moved up here from central Florida I could not believe that there seem to be NO big lakes with "open somewhat clear water" that were skiable or that you could run a boat on without a "go-devil" motor. It was quite depressing actually.

I think the duck hunters have plenty of places to go hunt. Especially Bman.....he would hunt Lake Ella if it weren't so close to the po po station! LOL!

It will be interesting to see how this plays out, but duck hunters, with a limited season, during the freezing cold, will be arguing for a few months, while everyone else, minus the greenies, will want to make the lake really usable for the other 10 1/2 months of the year.

[onefishtwofish]

"open somewhat clear water"

Is not natural in this part of the state. Jackson sinks on it's own. There are other lakes around that do the same. They are like Prairie Pothole ponds, the natural cycle has vegetation that springs up in low water and then re-floods. They have been a food source and habitat source for a very long time for lots of species of fish and birds and reptiles and amphibians. We have 2 large reservoirs with very large sections that are suitable for pleasure boating and a really really really big pond right nearby (the Gulf). Having people be able to run around on jet skis and go fast boats should be given no more consideration than opening the Appalachicola National Forest to off road UTV and ATV use. It is not ecologically sound management.

[cotton]

Having people be able to run around on jet skis and go fast boats should be given no more consideration than opening the Appalachicola National Forest to off road UTV and ATV use. It is not ecologically sound management.

So funny!!! Thats exactly how us kayakers feel about mudboats, airboats, and every other type of motor used on Jackson. We shouldn't dismiss anyones chosen recreation. I could easily rant about the duck hunters and how the ruin fishing until 10 AM every day. But, would that be fair to those who enjoy duck hunting.

Realize everyone's hobby has a negative impact on someone else.

I didn't fish Jackson in 2014 because the high water brought back the boats. In 2013, I fished 2-3 times a week. The kayakers owned Jackson for several years.

Here's my take.
FWC should choose to manage each lake according to what benefits the community as a whole the most. Each lake has unique topography that makes it better suited for certain species. Policy should not be dictated by who yells the loudest.

In my opinion, bass fishing on Jackson is what benefits the community the most. Years ago, folks would travel hundreds of miles to fish Jackson. The economic impact was large. Lets face it there are better destinations for duck hunting and boating. It doesn't mean we can't share. It just means we should have our priorities.

[onefishtwofish]

Agreed that we should share, but I am coming at it from both a fishing and hunting standpoint, but mostly ecological. For the record, you will never see me there duck hunting. I have been, but too many folks blowing their kazoos. If it were paddle only I would be way more tempted to use it with my kayak (Puddler).

Also, if no motors were deemed necessary for the ecological impact, I would also support that. Huge difference from spraying chemicals. A wasteland of open water is useless to fishermen as well. Ask the guys that fish Istapoga what they think of spraying. Trust me, it is a huge can of worms, that once opened, is very hard to stuff back in. And the pleasure boaters and homeowners just care about open lanes to run fast in their boats. It is true on Seminole as well. Has hurt the hunting and the fishery. Spraying should be done for biological reasons ONLY - homeowners, jet skiers, duck hunters, fishermen should all be disregarded. It should be what is best for the habitat. What is broken about the lake that requires fixing? Every time they spray, the dying vegetation falls to the bottom as muck-lowering the oxygen levels and moving the fish out for about a month. Do that enough and the bottom becomes sterile. Nature abhors a vacuum and soon there will be algae blooms as well-thereby ensuring no now growth of SAV. Next thing you know, you get cattail and bulrush monocultures and the lake is forever changed. I am basing this opinion on what has occurred on many other lakes in the state. Seminole looks nothing like it did as little as 20 years ago.

Don't know how this will come out, but spraying is almost never a good thing. With rare exceptions like hyacinth and Brazillion Pepper-tree.

[lonesouth]

anyone have an update from the meeting?

[BlindHog]

Attended the Lake Jackson meeting and will try to summarize best I can. I duck hunt so that is my focus. I do fondly remember skiing there in the 1970s and seeing 13 lb lunkers in the 1960s glory years.

First of all, I thought maybe the meeting was to introduce some new spraying/veg control plan that FWC had planned. Not the case.

What triggered this meeting to discuss aquatic vegetation control efforts by FWC was a request by an ad hoc group called "Friends of Lake Jackson" for more vegetation clearing for boating and skiing and aesthetics. In other words, the wide coverage of pads and heavy amount of vegetation would be reduced to provide more "open water" which Jackson has had in decades past. Some of these are land/home owners on the lake. Some I know are well-to-do and could have connections.

That group had maybe a dozen present, hard to tell who was who other than those with camo on being duckhunters like me. Other members of the group were attending an unrelated county commission meeting at exact same time. The Friends of Jackson proposal was for clearing "about 1/4" of the lake, and a diagram was presented that showed two large areas to be targeted.

The lake is about 4000 acres so let's say they want 1000 sprayed. This year, I hunted in both zones targeted for spraying. Actually Jackson is so crowded that someone is hunting everywhere and removing duck "attractants" could worsen crowding. Birds can be anywhere on the lake (other than the Crowder Desert) so hunting could be impacted.

Our own Bman reported the responses on this site seem to indicate noone seems to think there is a problem with fishing and hunting conditions. Barry -- you may have lots to add to this post. There were at least 20-25 other duck hunters there. A couple of fishermen spoke for leaving lake alone too.

FWC presented a description of what it currently does at Jackson and what is budgeted/planned for 2015. They spend a surprizingly small amount (under $30,000) annually on all activities. Not surprizingly, this is focused on invasive species. Some chemical (the usual ones) and some carp control (hydrilla) is done.

Overall IMO FWC has been happy to let native vegetation do its thing for last several years. FWC also correctly pointed out that recent cold and high water is providing increased "open water" and that Mother Nature may accomplish a large part of what the "Friends of Lake Jackson" want done.

Next step by FWC is to continue to put together their next year budget/workplan for the lake. Appears they plan to target about 60-70 acres of specific invasives. Very small. Do not know what it would take to move the needle all the way to 1000 acres. Could be a funding problem to expand that quick.

This issue could blow over or die on the vine unless FWC believes the use of the lake needs to be changed from the current prevalence towards fishing/hunting to add more sailing/skiing/kayaking "space". I kayaked all over the lake with the pads and weeds easily this season by the way. It could easily be that the path of least resistance and least manipulation of the ecosystem could win the day.

FWC plans to send followup emails to all attendees and will likely hold another meeting, possibly after seeing what the spring brings in terms of vegetation. No date was set.

[waterdogds]

New to the forum, but not the area. I attended the meeting last night and it was insightful, to say the least. Property owners want more open water, while the fishermen and hunters want it left alone.

We shouldn't dismiss anyones chosen recreation.

Yet, you're ready to dismiss any boat with a motor on it. It's the revenue generated by boat registration, that cares for the lake and boat landings. Not your kayak.

In my opinion, bass fishing on Jackson is what benefits the community the most.

Forget your own selfish reasoning behind what you think should be done, and think about the lake and what needs to be done to clean it up.(Runoff Pollution)

Did you attend the meeting? FWC, in fact, say they're pleased with the lake and the management plan over the last five years. Water levels will come and go as well as the vegetation. Better efforts need to be made to control runoff pollution. Something that will benefit the lake, not the wants of selfish groups or individuals.

[bman]

Spot on BH!

I believe FWC already had their plan in place and the "Friends" plan was never a real option- both because of funding and what they belive is best for the lake. Currently they only spray about 40 acres of a +4000 lake for hyacinth and a few other invasive species. They also have released a lot of grass carp to chomp down on the hydrilla.

FWC also said if the rising water levels hold the lake will clear up on its own.
The lake is up another .5 feet and staff said there is a visible difference in the last week.
Cold and high water will open up the deeper areas of the lake.

I don't think the "friends" group mean harm- they are just advocating for what meets their needs.
We need to do the same. There is an opportunity for the forum to act as a local voice for Hunters and Fishermen.
A few of us will probably have an informal meeting soon. PM me if you would like to be part of that.

The most interesting info was the impact of invasive apple snails and runoff to the south end of the lake - aka the Crowder Desert! It was the main duck hunting area 5 years ago but in the last few years the water quality has degraded, the water has become darker and grass has died off. A lot of the hunters thought it had been sprayed- but FWC said they had not sprayed the area. It appears the increased runoff from our higher levels of rain have flushed fertilizer and other chemicals into that part of the lake. The bad news is it could spread to the rest of the lake as the grass that cleans the water dies off. There was some talk after the meeting about remedies.

I really enjoyed meeting staff and seeing the other folks from the forum there.