(WNFL) – The Wisconsin Natural Resources Board has accepted a $90,000 donation from the Lake Poygan Sportsmen’s Club to construct a breakwall at the mouth of the Wolf River where it enters Lake Poygan.
The donation will advance an approved Department of Natural Resources project totaling $378,700 to create a 1,170 foot long breakwall extending from the shore into Lake Poygan. This structure will be the first of a number of similar structures to be built between the river’s mouth and the “Boom Cut” navigation channel.
The broken limestone structures will dissipate wave energy, stop erosion of the shoreland marsh edge and allow rooted aquatic plants to take root and grow, forming a quiet water area with quality habitat for fish and wildlife. This first structure will serve as an engineering test of the construction technique and will be the cornerstone, anchoring the structure to the shoreline.
Justine Hasz, DNR fisheries bureau director, said when completed, the entire project will protect 400 acres of critical habitat including deep water marsh and an eroding marsh edge. The area receives little boat traffic because of the shallow water and the project is not expected to affect navigation in the area.
Kendall Kamke, fisheries team supervisor in Oshkosh said the project will protect and start to restore important habitat that has been lost over time.
The project has been 15 years in the making and has strong local support, said Pat Gorchals, vice president of the Lake Poygan Sportsmen’s Club.
