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Kansas City, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and partners added 75 sunken brush piles in Smithville Lake for fish habitat on March 20. This project is a partnership between MDC, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Clay County Parks, Recreation, and Historic Sites.
The brush piles were placed on the east side of the lake, north of Route W, on the northeast side of the waterfowl refuge zone. That is where MDC had the former Trimble Wildlife Area prior to construction of the lake.
Creating the new fish habitat required several personnel, some heavy equipment, large boats, and four barges. Crews cut unwanted trees on the public land and hauled them to a loading site onshore. The trees were placed on the barges, tied together, weighted down, and sunk in varied offshore sites.
Brush piles provide havens for young fish and bait fish. They also attract sport fish like bass and crappie. The GPS locations of the brush piles will eventually be available to anglers on MDC’s MO Fishing app.
For information about the MO Fishing app or to download it, visit http://short.mdc.mo.gov/ZJZ. For information about Smithville Lake, visit http://short.mdc.mo.gov/ZWJ.
