Issue 13•October 2005 Keeping you informed about the land and water we care about.
You can reach us by phone: 540-674-0166; or mail: Friends of Claytor Lake, PO Box 815, Pulaski, VA 24301
This issue’s content:
1. Mussels and the Drawdown
2. Clean Up Report
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1. Mussels and the Drawdown
Due to lingering questions regarding the affect of the drawdown on Claytor Lake’s
mussel population, much of the October FOCL board meeting was spent discussing
this subject.
Being situated so close to Virginia Tech, we are very fortunate to have nearby one
of the most respected scientists in the mussel field. Dr. Richard Neves, who has
researched and written extensively on the subject of fresh water mussels, attended
the meeting and gave a very informative and interesting presentation on mussels.
We also had special guests from The Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries
(VDGIF), and Frank Simms the Hydro Support Manager from AEP.
From the October FOCL Board Meeting:
LEFT: Dr. Neves with FOCL Board Member Mike Spraker.
MIDDLE: Brian Watson (VDGIF & who studied under Dr. Neves) & Board Member Larry Bandolin.
RIGHT: Bill Katrell and John Copeland (from VDGIF) with Frank Simms (AEP)
Some quick mussel facts from the presentation:
1. Claytor Lake has 5 species of mussels (the pocketbook, the pistolgrip, the
purple wartyback, the giant floater, and the paper pondshell).
2. None of the 5 species in Claytor Lake are endangered--however the pistol grip
may soon be included on the endangered species list.
3. Mussels serve as an amazingly efficient natural water filter; as they feed, their
digestive system filters out pollutants, silt and algae from water.
4. Mussels can be very hardy and can survive long periods of dry weather by
burrowing deep into a lake bed.
5. Unlike their saltwater cousins, the clam or oyster, they are less tasty and are
more chewy plus their natural water filtering leaves undesirable pollutants in
them and thus are not a desirable food source for humans.
Follow this link for more information on freshwater mussels:
http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/fisheries/420-014/420-014.html#TOC
FOCL Treasurer Bill Cunningham looks over the mussels.
After the presentation, including a fascinating film clip which displayed feeding
mussels filtering impurities from water, there was a robust discussion...and some
frank questions came up:
•Is the drawdown really necessary?
•Must it be done every year?
•Is the drawdown worth shortening the fishing and boating season?
•Who benefits from the drawdown?
•Do lake stakeholders truly use the drawdown for clean-up and repairs?
•Or is it something that continues to be done out of tradition with little regard to
actual practicality?
If you have thoughts regarding the drawdown, please share them with us:
info@focl.org (or reply to this enews)
In conclusion, the FOCL Board, in striving for a balanced approach to caring for
Claytor Lake, remained with its original recommendation for the drawdown over
the month of November, but the Board re-emphasized the need for further study
and offered any assistance it could provide to Dr. Neves and VDGIF to implement
the study.
AEP, through Hydro Support Manager Frank Simms, accepted these recommendations
with the caveat that if weather is predicted that could harm the mussels during the
drawdown (2 consecutive nights below 35 degrees), the lake would be refilled to
protect them. If an unscheduled filling of the lake is to take place, AEP & FOCL will
work together to get the word out.
The Friends of Claytor Lake sincerely appreciates Dr. Neves and the VDGIF team for
their time and their interest in Claytor Lake.
2. Clean Up Report
As of October 11, 2005, 105 roll-off dumpsters of debris have been removed from
Claytor Lake. The average weight of debris in a roll-off is 15 tons--thus a total of
1,575 tons of debris have been removed from the Lake in 2005. Sixty four roll-offs
were removed from the State Park and the remaining 41 roll-offs of debris came
out of Harry Dehaven Park, Lakeview Cove, and Buzzard Roost Hollow.
The roll-off dumpster—this has been filled 105 times with debris from the lake.
Also, the huge debris pile at Big Hole Hollow--with approximately 3,000 tons worth
of debris--has been burned.
The debris pile at Big Hole Hollow before burning.
And during...
Thanks Jeff!
Many thanks to those who managed the burn: The Snowville Fire Department,
Dean Jackson, Ronnie Powers and H.T. Bowling.
During the winter months, FOCL is launching a concerted effort to research a more
environmentally sensitive method of eliminating the debris than burning--and we
are open to any good ideas. As an example, the idea of chipping the wood into
landscape mulch has been suggested. If you have an idea, let us hear it!
