Lake Contrary weed treatment begins
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- After a 24-hour delay, a Buchanan County contractor was able to take on the task of spraying weeds at Lake Contrary.
A helicopter pilot sprayed Clearcast Aquatic Herbicide, an EPA-approved product, on more than 300 acres of land. High winds delayed the two-day project that was supposed to start on Monday and turned it into a one-day job on Tuesday.
"I believe that he wanted a drone photo of it sometime last week just to kind of see where the green was and all that stuff because there are certain areas where certain types of vegetation need a little bit more (Clearcast)," Buchanan County Presiding Commissioner Scott Nelson said.
A product overview on its website says the growth of sensitive plants will stop 24 hours after application. Nelson estimates that it will be six weeks before the aquatic herbicide kills the vegetation.
"I think this takes a little while for it just because it's got to get absorbed, and then it's got to move down the root stem to the root ball, and then it starts to work on the root ball," he said. "I'm assuming that we're going to see the color changes and that sort of thing."
The Missouri Office of Administration told the Buchanan County commissioners last October that taking care of the lake was their responsibility once it dried up. Nelson said removing the weeds is primarily to remove fire hazards.
"This is the first step since we've been mandated by the state to maintain it," Nelson said. "So this is what we're doing to maintain it."
Buchanan County received a permit from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources on Friday to allow weed spraying, but the county still has not received a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the lake.
"Other things have kind of crept up and overtaken it on the to-do list," Nelson said. "The big one being the (juvenile) detention center."
Nelson said the weed spraying on Tuesday is the largest effort to remove vegetation at Lake Contrary that he can think of. Now, the county commission will observe the results over the next couple of months.
"This is 300 acres that we want to get beat down and basically see how it does and then how long it lasts," Nelson said.
