Lake Pupuke clear enough to receive another 500 fat trout

Fish & Game will release another tanker load of (2-4lb) rainbow trout into Lake Pupuke today (Thursday) at 11.30am.

Last week they released 500 ready for a weekend angling competition run by Trout Unlimited and the North Shore Anglers, which was so successful they are now releasing another 500.

The competition attracted anglers from all over the region.

Lake Pupuke was first stocked with rainbow trout in the 1880s, making it the first lake to be stocked in New Zealand, but as its water quality declined so did its attraction as a trout fishing lake.

Data from the 1990s to today shows significant improvements in the lake’s water clarity. It has less frequent algal blooms, and although it has pest fish species their populations are not out of balance.

The lake’s water clarity is now second only in the Auckland region to Lake Otatoa, a near pristine lake in the South Kaipara Heads.

Grant Barnes, Auckland Regional Council Water Quality, says real hoimprovements began from the late 1960s onwards when all wastewater in the lake’s catchment area was reticulated and diverted away, and they ceased pumping water out of the lake.

“It takes a long time for a lake’s water quality to deteriorate, and a long time for it to significantly improve,” says Barnes.

“We are now seeing numerous lakes in the north island decline in water quality because of decades of point source pollution from wastewater and agricultural inputs in their catchments.

“If Lake Pupuke’s health is to continue to remain as good as it is then we need to reduce less visible inputs, particularly stormwater and chemicals/nutrients from lawn and garden fertilisers.”

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