Menasha lock will remain closed after authority stops work on invasive species barrier
MENASHA — The Menasha lock will remain closed for the foreseeable future.
The board of directors of the Fox River Navigational System Authority (FRNSA) voted unanimously Tuesday to stop work on an electric barrier designed to deter invasive fishes like the round goby from swimming upstream to Lake Winnebago and its prized fishery.
The construction of the low-voltage electric barrier was estimated to cost $7 million, plus annual operating costs of $300,000 to $400,000. That proved too costly.
"We could not complete the design and construction of the barrier without significant funds from the state and federal governments," FRNSA Executive Director Phil Ramlet said.
FRNSA spent $750,000 to develop the plan and another $250,000 for invasive species testing.
The Menasha lock has been closed since 2015, when the round goby, an invasive fish populating the Great Lakes, was discovered downstream of Lake Winnebago. The closure has prevented boaters from navigating between Lake Winnebago and Little Lake Butte des Morts.
In the past nine years, the round goby has become abundant in the Fox River and Little Lake Butte des Morts. When the fish was discovered in the waters below the Neenah dam, the lock system was not open to the Great Lakes due to the permanent barrier at the Rapide Croche lock.
"It's possible the goby got into the Fox River through a bait bucket or a boat that was not properly cleaned," Ramlet said. "There's no guarantee that we could invest in building an electric barrier only to later find the goby in Lake Winnebago and render the system obsolete."
Before its 2015 closure, the Menasha lock was the busiest in the system. That title now belongs to the De Pere lock.
The locks are the only way the Fox River is navigable. From Menasha to the Bay of Green Bay, the river drops 168 feet in elevation. Between the Menasha lock and the Rapide Croche lock, the river has 17 miles of navigable water. Between the Rapide Croche lock and the Bay of Green Bay, the river has 20 miles of navigable water.
"Our goal has always been to restore navigation of the Fox River through the lock system, but we also want to ensure we are protecting the waterways," Ramlet said.
If the round goby were to populate Lake Winnebago, FRNSA said it would work with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to determine the best course of action regarding the Menasha lock.
Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DukeBehnke.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Menasha lock will remain closed after work stops on electric barrier
