Lake Shelbyville, IL -(Effingham Radio)- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Lake Shelbyville Fish Habitat Alliance will place 200 artificial structures into
Lake Shelbyville on March 21, 2020.
Volunteers are needed on shore to help assemble, load, and off load the fish structures. These artificial structures will take the place of Christmas trees that have been traditionally dropped every March. Christmas tree numbers have continued to dwindle and do not last more than 3 – 5 years, while the artificial structures will last indefinitely. To volunteer, meet at the Eagle Creek Boat Ramp parking lot by 8:30 a.m. Volunteers are required to sign in prior to starting work at 9:00 a.m. A free lunch will be provided when all the structures are placed.
In years past we have had a need for extra boats to help with dropping Christmas trees. Because we are only dropping artificial structure this year there will not be a need for volunteers to bring their boats, however, there will be plenty to do!
Maps with the approximate GPS locations of the cubes and artificial stumps will be available the day of the drop. Often the actual placement will vary slightly from the planned locations due to water depths encountered while placing the structure. Due to this, the exact GPS coordinates will likely change and correct maps will need to be made. These maps will be available at local businesses for 60 days. After this time frame, the maps can be printed from the Lake Shelbyville Fish Habitat Alliance Facebook page and the USACE Lake Shelbyville website.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers greatly appreciates the support of this project from the surrounding communities. For more information on the annual fish habitat day contact Natural Resources Specialist Cory Donnel at (217) 774-3951, ext. 7001.
