Lake Apopka Spray meeting

OGBOHICA

Anyone care to announce the meeting time and date? Maybe we can keep one lake with some SAV or atleast 30% of it?

N. Cook

FWC Lake Apopkla Public Meeting
HYDRILLA MANAGEMENT
6 PM AT THE TANNER HALL, 29 W GARDEN AVE. WINTER GARDEN, FL 54787

APOPKA was a dead mud hole 20 years ago.  Finally hydrilla came into the lake and has cleaned the water to a point the bass fishery and duck hunting has returned.  Now, there are statkeholders calling for the FWC to spray out the hydrilla!  Incredible as that may seem, killing the very SAV that saved the lake.
UW-F opposes spraying of SAV in all but a few situations, ie. keeping structures open.  UW-F calls for a minimum of 30% SAV coverage of all Florida's fresh water bodies to ensure healthy clean water and habitat for fish and wildlife.  

"FWC will consider all input in developing the Spring 2-23 hydrilla management plan"
If you fish or duck hunt on Lake Apopka, you need to be at this meeting supporting a high amount of SAV on Apopka, hydrilla if that is what is present..  There are stakeholders who want open water and no vegetation along the shoreline......bad news for the lake.

bowhunter4life

Anyone who has fished or hunted in any Florida lake can see what spraying does. You don’t have to be a biologist to figure it out…. STOP the spraying!
Look no further than okeechobee or istopoga to see the damage. Money is the motive in my opinion.👹🤑

Pinman

My Dad grew up on Lake Apopka when it was pristine. I grew up on it when it was nasty.  

What date is the meeting and can Emails / calls be sent?

godvlman

So, according to SFWMD and FWC... High water levels kill hydrilla, turbulent water kills hydrilla, a drastic drop in water temperature kills hydrilla.  I guess I could go on and on with the excuses that the agencies have come up with over the years on why hydrilla is disappearing on Florida's lakes in which they say they do not spray to target hydrilla.  

If these are all true and these issues actually kill hydrilla to the point that it disappears from lakes for years then why spray?  Raise the water of the lake for a few weeks, let the high water take its toll on it!!!  

Or just maybe that high water excuse is just that.. an excuse!!!  Because it sure seems easier, and more cost effective to raise the water on a body of water or wait for mother nature to drop the water temperature in the lakes.  Something tells me FWC likes having that $10 million dollar spray budget!!  

OGBOHICA

Said it yrs ago, once its a line item in the budget it never goes away... to many people getting greased

BOHICA and well said Godvlman

swampdog

Godev - A majority of the lakes don’t have structures allowing lowering or raising the water elevations. The fluctuations are weather driven. 

joelunchbucket

Even the ones that do are weather driven. Mimicking the natural drawdown cycle isn’t always the intent though. 

OGBOHICA

The above 2 posts reflect the same excuses FWC has....MOST major waterbodies have the ability to raise and lower. Problem is the folks who manage that cant keep a **** floating in a toilet!

cortr

After an area is sprayed, the vegetation decays with the herbicide and creates a tar on the bottom that never goes away. It covers up hard bottom that will never be suitable for spawning. It is happening on Lake Okeechobee, ruining another great fishery.

OGBOHICA

THEY dont care about lake O they have already ruined it and plan to use it as a large water storage area, just like the glades and every other impoundment S of Hwy 70

joelunchbucket

What you fail to see (or at least acknowledge) is that the water levels in most of the managed lakes are managed by the water management districts and the Army Corp of Engineers for the benefit of people rather than for the benefit of fish or wildlife.

If you follow your logic, it could just as reasonably said that Rich Andrews is to blame for the lack of proper water level management of the managed lakes in FL.

The FWC has the same ability to influence decisions on water management schedules that you do. You’re free to share your thoughts and concerns about their management with the managers but they don’t have to even consider them, if they don’t align with their objectives. And they usually don’t, because they are mandated to focus on issues like flooding, water supply, or navigation and those issues don’t require consideration of fish or wildlife.  

Pinman

joelunchbucket said:

What you fail to see (or at least acknowledge) is that the water levels in most of the managed lakes are managed by the water management districts and the Army Corp of Engineers for the benefit of people rather than for the benefit of fish or wildlife.

If you follow your logic, it could just as reasonably said that Rich Andrews is to blame for the lack of proper water level management of the managed lakes in FL.

The FWC has the same ability to influence decisions on water management schedules that you do. You’re free to share your thoughts and concerns about their management with the managers but they don’t have to even consider them, if they don’t align with their objectives. And they usually don’t, because they are mandated to focus on issues like flooding, water supply, or navigation and those issues don’t require consideration of fish or wildlife.  

Well by golly, lets mow down the woods and put up affordable housing!  (sarcasm, but that is how the post reads and I dont think it was your intent)

swampdog

Actually most citizens would be happy to see the wildlife and woods at the state parks, zoos and carefully manicured downtown multiuser postage stamp green areas. I almost forgot the special folks that prefer their bear sittings on their lawns and around their garbage receptacles.

We hunter/carnivores are the outnumbered inhabitants that truly enjoy the wild critters in the wild areas. We survive the bitting bugs, gators, restrictive regulations and bad weather to be part of the best show on earth. 

N. Cook

If you are referring to the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes and river and Lake Okeechobee, the water levels and flows are determined by the USACE using a very detailed SCHEDULE as the guide/mandate. The Central Everglades, ie the WCAs, STAs and adjacent areas are operated by the South Florida Water Management District. Flows out of the Central Everglades are restricted by the U. S. Dept. of Interior into the Park.  The top two elements are "no flooding" and "water supply".  Enviromental issues are behind these.  The St. Johns system and other systems are similar, but mostly controled by Water Managemet Districts and not as hung up in FEDERAL LAWS as is the 'Everglades" drainage from Orlando to the Keys.

Regarding hydrilla.....hydrilla is killed by a too rapid increase in water depth and by cold temperatures.  Of course, spraying, even when the target species is not hydrilla, will kill hydrilla.  Most of the spraying is to remove floating vegetation, water lettuce and hyacinth. However, obviously collateral damage occurs.

OGBOHICA

Wow, this is a big admittance... so this debunks the facts we have been sold on that THEY dont target Hydrilla BUT, it happens!

 Of course, spraying, even when the target species is not hydrilla, will kill hydrilla.  Most of the spraying is to remove floating vegetation, water lettuce and hyacinth. However, obviously collateral damage occurs.

Big Mak

Yeah, that's the first time Newt has let that slip out... but it's something I've been saying for 25 years.... at least. 

OGBOHICA

Only a fool would believe that they havent been targeting everything they can to keep the spray boats working 5 days a week or more.

meateater

cant blame this one    cant blame that one   its this ones fault     its that ones fault      i swear some of the people on here should be working in bidens administration.     never anyones fault.     never any accountability.

OGBOHICA

But we only manage the areas we dont make the rules"

joelunchbucket

Some people just don’t seem to have good comprehension abilities.

There’s plenty to be critical of, if that’s your thing. Most of the aspersions cast about here are just attributed to the wrong party. It’s no wonder that they’re perpetually PO’d. 

Makes for some good comedy though!

OGBOHICA

Umm, who should we send our comments to?

The FWC's role in aquatic plant management: 

A variety of federal, state, local and private entities manage aquatic plants in Florida with the FWC being the lead agency.

joelunchbucket

As you said, it can vary depending on water body. In the case of the OP it would be the FWC and the SJRWMD. The first oversees what areas get treated and the contracts to get it done but the second has jurisdiction and sets the goals for management of the lake. If you could get the WMD to agree to the policy of 30% submerged aquatics it would happen. So far though, nobody has been able to get their buy-in on making that their policy so it’s not happening.

meateater

joelunchbucket said:

Some people just don’t seem to have good comprehension abilities.

There’s plenty to be critical of, if that’s your thing. Most of the aspersions cast about here are just attributed to the wrong party. It’s no wonder that they’re perpetually PO’d. 

Makes for some good comedy though!

what has happened to loxahatchee and lake O is no laughing matter funnybucket.   

joelunchbucket

Never said it was.

Some of the finger pointing that happens around here is though. 

It’s like watching someone get mad at the store clerk because they don’t like the price of what they want to buy. Sure, the clerk works at the store. But when you actually consider the how and the who of your concern, you can see that getting mad at the clerk won’t get you too far. You need to figure out who actually sets the price. 

OGBOHICA

It took 20k acres of restored wetlands and the removal of Pesticides to restore apopka.. fast forward THEY want to spray pesticides in it again?

Makes perfect sense, even the check out clerk laughs

Theyre gonna blanket spray it and start the cycle of pollution over again. 

Lake Apopka Cautionary Tale | WUFT Special Projects

joelunchbucket

If I read it here, it must be true!🤣

OGBOHICA

By far your most ignorant comment yet!

osprey11

You sure.  He has alot!

joelunchbucket

Always a good idea to take Rich with a grain of salt.

He shares lots of partially correct information.

OGBOHICA

Living in your head rent free Circa 2010