Lake Trafford Restoration

Lake Trafford, located in northeast Collier County, is the largest freshwater lake south of Lake Okeechobee. This lake was once a popular fishing destination for Largemouth Bass, Crappie, and Bluegill. Due to the agricultural lands in Immokalee, large amounts of dead hydrilla, and algae blooms, the fish population declined rapidly. Tons of muck covered the lake bottom preventing Bass and other fish from nesting. The large algae blooms lowered the oxygen levels, which sped up the fish kills. Thankfully, Lake Trafford is slowly recovering from dredging and restocking the lake with native freshwater fish species. As reported on the FWC website, wildlife biologists recently stocked the lake with 150,000 fingerling Largemouth Bass; hoping the lake will return to its glory when it was considered one of Florida's premier fishing lakes.
I've gone fishing in Lake Trafford several times and always wondered when Collier County will ever consider restoring the lake. Lake Trafford is an excellent attraction because of its history, birdwatching, and its natural beauty. Not only does the lake prosper, so does the local economy in the Immokalee area. When the fish population increases to their healthy levels, tourists and fishermen will return to the lake; while this will spark the openings of fish camps and other businesses that will draw in money to the local community (I only mention the economy in my opinion because there are usually two sides of the issue that must be satisfied: the environmentalists and the economists). By next year, the FWC also plans to stock the lake with more fingerling Bass due to threats from exotic fish species such as the Blue Tilapia and the Mayan Cichlids.