TEXARKANA -- The Southern Miller County Authority hopes to rehabilitate Mercer Bayou to correct problems caused by erosion.
Authority representatives Deryl Jones and Caleb Mudford said the rehabilitation would stop fish kills and log jams at the confluences of the Red River and Sulphur River and fix other issues.
The authority has drafted the help of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission to implement a five-year plan to improve the conditions of the bayou for wildlife, hunters and anglers, the pair said during the Red River Valley Association Conference on Wednesday in Texarkana.
With the erosion, plant growth and algae, Mercer Bayou is shrinking, they said. The erosion has caused some landowners to lose acres of land, Mudford said.
The authority also wants to use Mercer Bayou as an economic driver for the county through tourism in the Fouke and Doddridge areas.
"We have dreams for southwest Arkansas," Jones said.
The Game and Fish Commission will start draining the bayou July 1, said Mudford, an engineer with MTG Engineers and Surveyors.
In a meeting earlier in the spring in Fouke, representatives of the Game and Fish Commission said the bayou work will aid with sediment compaction, vegetation control and reduction of unwanted fish species.
Metro on 06/04/2017