US Forest Service and Alabama Power Company install fish habitat structures in Smith Lake

Alabama Power Company and Bankhead National Forest partnered again this year to improve fish habitat in Smith Lake and to improve sport fishing opportunities and angler success at Forest Service recreation areas.

Forest Service and Alabama Power Company employees utilize bundles of recycled Christmas trees and/or bamboo bucket structures to construct sunken fish habitat structures. The Alabama Power Company records the locations of the structures and produces a map to aid sport fishers in finding the structures. The structures provide habitat for small fish, which in turn will attract larger sport fish, such as bass and crappie. Twenty-five structures were installed at four sites near the Corinth Recreation Area. Fifty structures were installed at the Clear Creek Recreation Area.

To see the locations where the fish structures were placed, visit the Alabama Power Company's website at www.alabamapower.com/fishdata.

BOARD MEETING

Tuesday September 13th will be our next board meeting. There will be many things to discuss.Progress on signage being installed on all named tributaries, creeks, sloughs, etc. total 33. Fawn progam in October.
Start-up of the Rock Creek Watershed Management Plan. Discussion of future clean-ups. Coloring books for schools. Report on monthly water testing program on the lake in Winston County. Much more.
Advocacy board meetings are open to the public. If you need to know what we are working on, or if you have information about something on the lake, that we should know about, please come and tell us about it!!!
When: 10:00 AM, Tuesday, September 13th, @ Farmers and Traders Bank in Arley.

FUTURE CLEAN-UPS

Smith Lake is looking so great,very little white beaded foam any where on the lake.Thanks to the multitude of people who have helped us for so many years at our scheduled cleanups on the lake with Al. Power. Doug Powell has always been here with Al. Power boats for all of the scheduled cleanups.Doug brings t-shirts, bags to put litter in,furnishes about 1500 coloring books for us to distribute to all the kids from kindergarden through 3rd grade in school in Winston County.We've been doing this for 4 years.Since 2006 the Winston County Commissioners have disposed of 172 triple axle dump truck loads of white beaded foam from our clean-ups.THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS There has been over 150 boat houses/swim platforms removed from smith lake.Jim King allowed us to tie these structures up at his place of business (KING BOAT HOUSE BUILDERS) then he would have them removed,styrofoam removed, then balance of strucure burned up.Thank you Jim!!
There have been tons of debris removed,put in dumpsters supplied by TARRIE HYCHE at all of our scheduled clean-ups. Thank you Tarrie!!Bankhead Forest have let us use all 3 of their recreational areas for different clean-ups.Thank you Bankhead Forest!! CARL GODSEY let us use the Old Yellow Creek Marina several times for clean-ups. Thank you Carl!!Without the help of these people, Smith Lake in Winston County would still have all of this debris still floating on the lake.FUTURE CLEAN-UPS ON SMITH LAKE in WINSTON COUNTY will be completed by WCSLAI furnishing our boat/barge, with a captain, and tools. Labor, people picking up debris etc.will come from the area being cleaned up.They must load and unload the boat/barge.We are ready to help you, the owners of homes and property on Smith Lake, to keep this lake clean, clear and pristine.These clean-ups must be scheduled at least 2 weeks in advance with 4/5 people ready to work for a day.This is a great place to live,visit,play fish or just go boating.I think I moved to paradise,hopefully everyone will help take care of thIS BEAUTIFUL LAKE from now on!!!

Slough Cleanup on Smith Lake on June 17-18

Winston County Smith Lake Advocacy Inc. (WCSLAI) is sponsoring a Slough Cleanup on Smith Lake on Friday and Saturday, June 17 and 18, 2011.  The cleanup area is from Duncan Bridge to the headwaters of the Sipsey Fork.  Boat owners and other volunteers are needed.  WCSLAI will furnish trash bags and trash collection at three sites-Lakeshore Marina, Old Yellow Creek Marina, and Clear Creek Recreation Area from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.  Click on the photo above for a full size flyer that gives more information and a map of cleanup locations on the lake.

Rock Creek Watershed Management Project Kick-Off on Tuesday, June 7th

Hi Everyone,

I am excited to announce to you that we will have our official Rock Creek Watershed Management Project Kick-Off Meeting on Tuesday, June 7th in Arley at the Traders and Farmers Bank Building at 6:30 pm. We are anxious to start planning activities for the next few months and we really need your help. The first phase of the project will really focus on getting local folks familiar with the project's goals as well as general watershed and water quality concepts.

We will also be discussing the Bacteria Blitzes we have been doing over the last year. We will look at the progress of hotspot clean ups and also discuss the direction we'd like to go with the Blitzes in the coming year.

Several of our project partners who work with the Gulf of Mexico Alliance Project (which has funded the Bacteria Blitzes around Smith Lake) will be at the meeting, and they would love to meet you. They will share a little bit about the work they are doing on their side of the Gulf.

Please come out and share your ideas with the group. Contact me with any questions. Hope to see you soon!

Mona

WCSLAI Annual Meeting Photos

Photos from the Winston County Smith Lake Advocacy Annual Meeting on May 13th at Lakeshore Restaurant.

Slough Cleanup on Saturday, April 30th, 2011