The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is ramping up its restoration efforts this winter on False River, the popular oxbow lake in Point Coupee Parish.   
 
The agency is continuing to work towards improving the overall health and productivity of the lake through this multifaceted project, including fish stockings and dredging operations.
 
Last week, both black crappie and bluegill were stocked in the lake to help enhance the fishery.   Over 4,800 black crappie, with an average size of 5 inches, and 4,600 bluegill, with an average size of 4 inches, were released into the lake. The fish were reared at LDWF’s Booker Fowler Fish Hatchery in central Louisiana, and agency staff anticipates an additional stocking of black crappie later this week. Lake stockings are expected to continue at regular intervals.
 
Dredging on the north side of the lake, in an area known as “the North Flats,” will begin in mid-January. An estimated 94,500 cubic yards of sediment will be dredged from the lake bottom and pumped to an area adjacent to the lake. Through the use of geotubes, sediment is filtered from the water, and clean water is returned to the lake. The dredging operation is expected to last no longer than 210 days.
 
The dredging work will increase average depths in the area, and boost available fisheries habitat. Additionally, removing the unconsolidated sediments will reduce turbidity and ultimately improve overall water quality.
 
Funding for the dredging project was secured from the state legislature under the leadership of state Rep. Major Thibaut in cooperation with the False River Watershed Council.
 
A watershed management plan was drafted in 2013, and updated in 2018, to address issues within the watershed. The plan draws from the expertise of many parish, state and federal agencies, including LDWF, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Health and Hospitals, the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, as well as other local stakeholders.
 
To view the False River Restoration Plan, click here.
 
LDWF fish stocking videos and images are available here.