Project Title: Restoration of Water Levels in Rosedale (FFS #R4UG)

State: Mississippi

Initial Project Description: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS, the Service) will use $29,800 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) funds to restore Lake Perry Martin in Rosedale, Mississippi.

Lake Perry Martin is a fishing lake located inside the Great River Road State Park in the Mississippi Delta. Several years ago, the Mississippi River flooded and destroyed an old stone weir, causing the lake to drain back into the river. As a result, the water levels in the lake fell and fish kills regularly occurred in the summertime.

The Service contracted with Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee to rebuild the stone weir to make the lake a self-sustaining fishery again. The Service worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mississippi Valley Division, and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks to develop the plan.

According to Ron Garavelli, Director of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, “There’s no other bank fishing really within hundreds of miles. This project will help the fishing improve, and that will help everyone there.”

Rosedale is a small town, with a population of approximately 2,400. Rosedale’s median household income in 2007 was $21,666. According to Garavelli, “[Rosedale is] a very poor section of the Delta. They’ve really struggled economically.”

According to Donny Whitten, Member of the Bolivar County Board of Supervisors, “Rosedale has shrunk in population in recent years, but they are holding on like a lot of these little Mississippi towns are. It’s got a lot of history and folklore to it.”

1930s blues legend, Robert Johnson, played throughout the Mississippi Delta, including Rosedale and nearby Lake Perry Martin. According to Robert Johnson’s grandson and Vice President of the Robert Johnson Blues Foundation, Steven Johnson, “While growing up in the area, my grandfather spent a lot of time playing around Lake Perry Martin. He enjoyed playing for the crowds and having a good time.”

Steven Johnson added, “I think it’s great that the Recovery Act is helping to improve the community’s economic situation. My grandfather would be honored that this is taking place – and very supportive too.”

September 2011 Project Update:The Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee contracted with the Mississippi Limestone Corporation of Friars Point, Mississippi to complete the restoration of Lake Perry Martin. Mississippi Limestone Corporation completed the project in August 2010. The project went as planned, and the corporation was also able to construct an emergency spillway and stabilize the bank of the downstream outlet channel within the project budget.

According to Project Leader, Ron Nassar, “[The project] restored historic water levels in Lake Perry Martin to alleviate poor water quality conditions, improve the recreational fishery, and provide additional outdoor recreation opportunities for a predominantly minority population.”

The project provided temporary jobs for two people – a truck driver and a laborer.

Feature Story: $29,800 in Recovery Act Funding to Restore a Lake in Rosedale, Mississippi.

Photos:

Video: Recovering Rosedale
Watch an audio slideshow about the Recovery Act Project in Rosedale, Mississipi.

 
Originally posted 09/08/2010
Updated 09/15/2010
Updated 11/08/2010
Page Completed 09/07/2011