Saw this today on the CLA web site. Not sure what it will mean to fishing for bass and other gamefish in Candlewood in the long run.

CANDLEWOOD LAKE AUTHORITY AWARDED CT DEEP GRANT

“Grant application for sterile grass carp to combat annual milfoil growth in Candlewood is approved.”

The Candlewood Lake Authority is very pleased to announce that their $50,000 grant application for the stocking of Candlewood Lake with sterile triploid grass carp has been approved in full by the CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. This marks the first step in a new lake wide initiative to combat milfoil growth using the sterile grass carp to integrate with the work already being done by the winter draw downs and other localized efforts.

The CLA’s proposed project includes the planned stocking of triploid grass carp in 2015, monitoring of the water quality and Eurasian watermilfoil coverage in 2015 & 2016 and determining changes to either over the two year period. The project also includes starting a fund for supplemental stocking of grass carp in the future.

While the CLA was awarded $50,000 from the CT DEEP to offset the costs of the initial carp stocking, the grant also requires a 50% match, raising the total value of the project to over $100,000. The Towns of Brookfield, New Fairfield, New Milford and Sherman, as well as the City of Danbury have agreed toward contributing to the match. In addition the CLA will contribute to the match through water monitoring efforts. The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station’s annual weed mapping, funded by FirstLight Power Resources, will also be used toward raising the funds to meet the 50% match.

The grant allows recipients one year, from the date a contract is signed with the CT DEEP, to utilize their grant funding. The plan is to have sterile grass carp stocked in Candlewood Lake in 2015. Receiving the grant was the first step. The CLA and others have already been working with the State of CT to revise an older regulation regarding the stocking of sterile triploid grass carp that would otherwise be a barrier to the successful implementation of a stocking program here. Once the regulation is changed and the contract is signed with the CT DEEP, the CLA will then be able apply to the CT DEEP for a permit to stock the carp, the approval of which would then allow the CLA to order the fish, with a goal of stocking in Candlewood Lake in 2015.

The CLA is planning to keep residents and citizens updated on the progress and developments of this exciting project, both through electronic communications like this, as well as through planned public meetings and in the newspapers.