Boaters using the Des Moines River below the wastewater treatment plant on the southeast side of Des Moines should be aware that due to lower flows coming out of Saylorville Reservoir, two dredge pipes running from a nearby rock quarry to Easter Lake are near the water’s surface.
The pipes are part of the Easter Lake restoration project. The restoration project is addressing issues in the lake’s watershed to reduce sediment and nutrient runoff from reaching the lake, installing a fish barrier system to prevent unwanted fish, like carp, from entering the lake, removing 600,000 cubic yards of silt from the lake, and is adding many in-lake improvements, like fish habitat structures.
The two 20-inch black plastic pipes on the Des Moines River are marked by signs and buoys alerting river users to the potential hazards. Silt is being pumped through one of the black pipes crossing the river and water is being pumped back to Easter Lake from the rock quarry through the other pipe. The pipes were installed in the spring.
The segment of the river isn’t a popular area for boating, but is used by kayaks, canoes and smaller fishing boats. The dredging project is expected to last through the fall into early winter.