TOWN OF WINNECONNE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The public will get a chance to weigh in on the future of a popular recreation area near Oshkosh.
Terrell’s Island is on Lake Butte des Morts, and has been a place to hike, and enjoy nature for decades. The site includes a 3.8 mile long breakwall, designed to keep wind and waves out, and improve conditions in the wetlands nearby.
“The water clarity increased dramatically, which brought back plants, and when you get aquatic vegetation back, you have a habitat, and fish and wildlife kind of respond to it as well. The project was initially very successful,” said Adam Nickel, DNR Fisheries Biologist.
Nickel says over time the 569-acre site developed issues with water flow, and habitat suffered. Now, the Department of Natural Resources wants to improve that flow, by removing 2,200 feet of that breakwall.
“We found with a number of breakwall projects on the system, the more exchange you have, generally the better the water quality you have in the long term,” said Nickel.
Nickel says the rock removed will be used to help create a new mile-long off-shore breakwall in Samers Bay nearby.
“We’ve got some existing shoreline there that’s eroding at a pretty fast rate. About 8-9 feet per year, of wetland loss,” he said.
The DNR says the project could cost around a million dollars.
“We’re hoping to do most of the work during the winter, so a lot of it will depend on ice conditions, and that sort of thing. But we think that if things continue to move forward, hopefully within the next year or two, we could actually complete the project,” said Nickel.
The Butte des Morts Conservation Club, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Winnebago County Land and Water Conservation Department will hold two public meetings in March regarding proposed habitat restoration efforts at Samers Bay and Terrell Island on Lake Butte des Morts.
The first public meeting will be held Wednesday, March 11, at Omro Town Hall, 4205 Rivermoor Road, Omro. The second public meeting is set for Thursday, March 12, at the JP Coughlin Center, 625 E. County Road Y, Oshkosh. Each meeting will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
