ParksMonday, November 2
AG Tim Griffin pledges $500,000 to restore the War Memorial Park fishing pond
The Today in Little Rock team
If you've wondered when the fishing pond at War Memorial Park will be fishable again, there's movement. Attorney General Tim Griffin pledged $500,000 Thursday at a fundraiser at Trio's Restaurant, setting the money aside from a Monsanto settlement over PCB pollution. Silt has turned the pond into a shallow wetland.
$64 millionMonsanto settlement over PCB pollution, $32 million of it guaranteed
Griffin said $32 million is guaranteed, and that his office will dedicate a large portion to protecting water quality.
Steve Davison's group picked the cheapest of three plans: dredging the mud and adding fish habitat, at $750,000. An earlier report said organizers hoped to raise money that would also cover fishing piers and trees for fish habitat. Griffin's pledge leaves it $250,000 short, and he didn't say where the rest comes from. It's a temporary fix that won't keep silt from refilling the pond.
- Fri., Nov. 6: Griffin plans statewide water announcements with state agencies
- Lasting fix: restoring stream banks will cost multiple millions
- Trout: Game and Fish says a deeper pond could support winter fishing