this was in the newspaper about the drawdown. When Lake D’Arbonne is lowered on Sept. 2, repairs to the dam won’t be the only benefit the low water will provide.

This year has seen the explosion of the growth of hydrilla, a foreign aquatic plant, which has caused major problems at other lakes in Louisiana.
Lake D’Arbonne had been able to avoid a major hydrilla infestation for years, but in the last three years the noxious plant has taken hold and expanded on the 15,000-acre lake.
“We didn’t find hydrilla (on Lake D’Arbonne) until three years ago,’’ said Mike Wood, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries biologist. “We have hydrilla all over the state, but we had been very fortunate.’’
Hydrilla first showed up at Lake D’Arbonne three years ago in the Tech Landing area. Now, large expanses of the weed can be seen from Tech Landing, around Rattle Snake Bend, Lake D’Arbonne State Park, the Redden’s Camp area and the Mixing Hole.
Unchecked, hydrilla can overtake a lake, making it hard to navigate while having a negative impact on the fisheries.
Ten years ago, Caney Lake in Jackson Parish had a severe hydrilla problem that threatened the entire lake.
The hydrilla problem on Lake D’Arbonne hasn’t reached that level yet, but it has infested some areas of the lake.
“When we first identified the plant in D’Arbonne, we went to the Lake Commission meetings and it was so frustrating because some of fishermen we talked to said they were happy they had hydrilla in D’Arbonne Lake,’’ Wood said. “They associate hydrilla with good fishing. We’ve got a problem with a plant that’s not native and we’ve got to deal with it.’’
The state recently pumped additional money into the LDWF’s budget to fight invasive aquatic vegetation, mainly to help with the emergency situation on Lake Bistineau, where giant salvinia is ruining the lake.
The LDWF has been spraying herbicides to fight the giant salvinia problem at Bistineau, but Wood says spraying is not an option on D’Arbonne.
“As far as spraying and controlling, that’s not even in the cards,’’ Wood said. “Spraying submerged plants is a very, very expensive proposition.’’
Hydrilla was discovered in the United States in 1960 at two Florida locations, a canal near Miami and in Crystal River. It spread throughout the state very rapidly. By the early 1970s it was established in major water bodies of all drainage basins in the state.
Hydrilla is now found in all Gulf Coast states, Atlantic Coast States as far north as Maryland and Delaware, and in the western states, California, Washington, and Arizona.
Wood said he is unsure how hydrilla was introduced into D’Arbonne. It could have been as simple as a piece of the weed hanging on a boat trailer.
“The fact is, it can fragment and travel long distances and establish a colony and it has tremendous growth potential,’’ Wood said. “It’s very difficult to get control of with herbicides.’’
Caney Lake battled hydrilla by introducing grass carp, a voracious vegetation eater. However, too many carp were put in the lake and all of the vegetation was removed. The carp, which are sterile, have begun to die off and now, 10 years later, taken Caney Lake has recovered.
“We had hoped for years to never get hydrilla on this lake,’’ Lake Commission president Steve Cagle said. “We’ve got some now, one way or another, and now we’ve got to deal with it.’’
Wood and Cagle are hoping the drawdown will have some impact.
“We don’t have a lot of options,’’ Wood said. “We’ll have to see what effect the drawdown will have. I’m concerned because D’Arbonne is not just a fishing lake. It’s a multi-purpose reservoir. It has water sports and a lot of value for aesthetics. You don’t want a mat of vegetation at your home.’’
Wood said it’s possible the drawdown, scheduled to be four or five feet, could go even farther if he thinks it will have an impact on the hydrilla. He said he might also recommend leaving the water down past Dec. 1 to try and get a good frost on it.
Individual homeowners could also use the drawdown opportunity to apply herbicide to the hydrilla in their area.
“We could extend the drawdown to January and it wouldn’t hurt a thing,’’ Wood said. “We just have to see what effect the drawdown is going to have. If we can get to a point we can live with, fine, if not we will have to take it as it comes.’’