The success of the Lake Poinsett renovation proved to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission that it is possible to rejuvenate Lake Conway.
On Wednesday, the Commission approved an ambitious plan to transform Lake Conway into a showcase that will provide high quality fishing opportunities not only for Conway and Mayflower, but for all of Central Arkansas.
It is the most ambitious plan to renovation a public area that I seen in my 18 years on the state's outdoors beat.
Over my lifetime I have watched Lake Conway degrade from a premier bass, bream and crappie lake to an aging asset that is rapidly being choked to death from the effects of urban development. In my youth, the lake contained so many trees that driving a boat was nearly impossible. Inexorably, the trees are slowly going away, and the lake is becoming more open. That represents a net loss of fish habitat.
More important is the inexorable loss of water holding capacity and loss of habitat that has come from siltation. The lake is filling with mud. In the 1970s and 80s, portions of the lake on the west side of I-40 was a highly productive place to fish for bream and bass. Now, an inexperienced eye mistakes it for dry land.
Ben Batten, deputy director for the Game and Fish Commission, said that the plan will increase water volume in the lake from 28-46%. The average depth will increase by 1.5%, and as much as 3 feet in some areas. This will restore its water storage capacity to its 1975 level, Batten said.
As at Lake Poinsett, the commission will drain Lake Conway for 18-24 months. Exposing the lake bottom to the atmosphere and to direct sunlight will bake the soil and cause it to settle and compact. It will remain hard when the lake refills. This hard bottom will serve as fish spawning habitat.
Also, the commission will improve boat lanes by removing stumps.
Additionally, the commission will install artificial fish structures and natural brush piles. Batten said that the agency will install about 3,500 structures. That translates to a one structure every two acres. The AGFC will also install pea gravel spawning beds and stake beds. It will also plant cypress trees.
Of course, a lot of brush and grass will grow on a dry lake bed in two years. This will create many acres of excellent natural fish cover when the lake refills. As has often been demonstrated repeatedly across the nation, this revitalizes a fishery.
Lake Poinsett attests to this fact. Its renovation took about three years. It was dry most of that time. Its banks were stabilized. Sunlight and air conditioned its bottom. Fish structures were planted all over. Now, Lake Poinsett is flush with habitat. Its coves are full of green bushes, and they are full of grass. The grass provides thermal refuge and sunlight refuge for bass.
Most important, the grass provides a foundation for a rich and diverse food chain. It supports plankton, which supports vast clouds of minnows and shad. Bass hide in the grass, and they rise constantly to raid the bait schools. It happens constantly, and for an angler, it is a beautiful sight.
When the renovation is complete, we will see it at Lake Conway, too.
There is a downside, of course. The lake will cease to exist for about two years while it is being renovated. Advanced senior citizens might not be able to fish Lake Conway again. However, people of that age who have fished Lake Conway for decades remember how good it was in its heyday. The renovation will rejuvenate the lake and create a new heyday and provide great fishing opportunities for young anglers for many years to come.
Recreational assets have greatly improved the quality of life in Central Arkansas. One thing we don't have is a high-quality fishing opportunity. Lake Maumelle is inconsistent, but it is managed for water quality, not fishing. The Arkansas River is a marginal fishery. The Little Red River and Lake Dardanelle are at least an hour away from Little Rock.
A renovated Lake Conway will not be able to host a national fishing tournament, but it will fill provide a sustainable fishery that is accessible to everybody.