BLUEGILL BAY work COMPLETE

B.C. Kowalski

Bluegill Bay has clearer water and is a better fishery all around, thanks to a county parks project.

Restoration of the Bluegill Bay fishery in Rib Mountain is now complete, parks officials say.

Workers last month completed a two-month project to dredge a fifth of the pond’s vegetation and sediment. The weeds and gunk made it tough to fish or otherwise enjoy the pond at the popular park along Lake Wausau, in the town of Rib Mountain, says Parks Department Assistant Director Peter Knotek. Dredging only a portion of the pond preserved vegetation for young fish to hide but helped bring fresh groundwater in.

Funding for the $385,000 project came from community foundations and money from the county’s Environmental Impact Fund.