By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Soil samples have been taken. Tests will be done. Then, it will be up to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers whether dredging can begin as Buchanan County attempts to restore Lake Contrary.
Western District Buchanan County Commissioner, Ron Hook, says the final soil test plots were taken on Monday and sent to the lab. That comes after herbicide was spread to kill the weeds which have overtaken Lake Contrary.
“It’s worked in spots. We’ve had probably 70% of it take hold of the spray,” Hook says during an appearance on KFEQmmunity. “Our contracted person is going to come back and view it again before fall. If it needs to be re-sprayed in some areas, he’s going to do that.”
Hook says the weeds must be removed before dredging can begin.
Dredging will not be allowed unless the Army Corps of Engineers grants Buchanan County a permit.
Hook says work to restore Lake Contrary has been a long time coming.
“We’ve been working on this off-and-on throughout my whole tenure of county commissioner,” Hooks says. “So that’s been 16 years. This is the closest we’ve been at this point.”
At present, the lake south of St. Joseph resembles more of a field than a lake. There is little water in Lake Contrary. There are plenty of weeds. Those weeds don’t just suffocate the lake, they would wreak havoc on any attempts to dredge, stubbornly clinging to the earth and clogging any efforts to uproot them.
Hook says the process of restoring Lake Contrary has dragged on for years.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” Hook says. “And I think with these soil samples, it’s going to show and prove to the Corps of Engineers that what we’re going to do is going to be a positive for the community.”
Hook says the final 34 soil samples were taken on Monday. The Corps of Engineers will examine the results to determine whether to permit Buchanan County to dredge the lake and deposit soil back into the Missouri River.
You can follow Brent on X @GBrentKFEQ