Lake now refilling with adequate rainfall, LDWF says
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announced the new Cross Bayou weir in the Larto-Saline Complex is complete, and the lake will now refill and return to pool stage with adequate rainfall.
According to a press release, repeated blowouts of the original weir during flooding events necessitated construction of a much more substantial structure over the summer.
The hydrology of the Larto-Saline Complex was seriously impaired by a series of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects, and the weir originally was built in 1987 as a measure to restore water flow from the Black River, according to the release.
The weir was instrumental in the complex’s restoration, and a result, one of the state’s most productive crappie fisheries was returned to recreational anglers, the release states.
The Larto-Saline Lake complex encompasses portions of Avoyelles, Catahoula, LaSalle and Rapides parishes. The Cross Bayou weir is one of several structures throughout the complex that maintains the water level in the lakes.
