Residents complain of fish reek from lake draining

GRAFTON - Residents near the Two Rivers National Wildlife Refuge in Calhoun County say their area stinks because the draining of lakes has left millions of dead fish rotting in the water.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources periodically drains the lakes, leaving dead and rotting fish, many of which are pumped into the nearby confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers.

The (Alton) Telegraph has received multiple complaints about the recent draining of Swan Lake, which covers 2,500 acres, but averages only three feet in depth.

Refuge Manager John Mabery says the lake gets silted in so badly it is necessary to drain it out every few years so new vegetation can grow. He also says 90 percent of the fish killed are unwanted species such as Asian carp and gar.