Lake Toho invasive plant removal to improve water quality, flow

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]But out here, a lot of people use shiners, minnows, worms. Stephen Foster makes the trip to Osceola County's Lake Toho regularly to cast a line. Uh this is where I typically fish, uh here at the big Toho Marina. He enjoys the water, but knows it could be even better if it were less overgrown.

[00:00:17]And I can't imagine the the fishermen going out in their boats cuz, you know, the average depth here, I think, is only like 10 ft. Something like that, 10 or 12 ft in this lake. Uh so, any vegetation that grows up from the bottom, from it being so shallow, they can really bog down the boat.

[00:00:30]>> And soon, another part of it will be.

[00:00:32]Osceola County is working to remove invasive aquatic plants from the northern part of the lake to improve water quality and flow. Vegetation will be removed using specialized equipment encouraging native wildlife to flourish.

[00:00:46]This is what that machine looks like.

[00:00:47]News 6 captured it at work as part of the lake was cleared last fall. This project is made possible because of 1.3 million dollars in funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. That's the state's lead agency on environmental management. For people who enjoy the lake, seeing it cared for is a win.

[00:01:06]>> I think it'd be good for a round for all everyone that loves to fish out here, catching bass, gar. So, I think it'd be a good thing for them to do that. That work won't impact private docks, seawalls, or other structures. Stephanie Rodriguez, News 6.