Atascadero’s herd of goats at the lake to move on
Goats have successfully cleared 10-acres of weeds from the lakebed
–The City of Atascadero Public Works Department has announced that the contract with “Central Coast Green Goats,” of Atascadero has recently expired. With the amount of rainfall received from the recent storms and with even more expected next week, the city has decided that the goats should now be removed from the lakebed area.
With sufficient rainfall and runoff, city public works staff will be able to reopen the lake fill pipeline which redirects a portion of the water running in Atascadero Creek to the lake, supplementing the amount of water flowing into the lake from runoff. City staff would like to have the goats relocated before the pipeline is reopened, so they have contacted the owner to request that the goats be picked up. With their assignment at the lake now at an end, it is expected that the herd will be relocated by Saturday, Jan. 9.
Approximately 75 goats have been grazing in the lakebed since last October to aid in vegetation removal within the lakebed. They have been a very cost effective, productive and natural vegetation removal resource, approved by the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and have successfully cleared approximately 10 acres of weeds and vegetation from the lakebed. The city says that it has been very pleased with the success the project and expects to utilize the goats again in the future for drainage swale clearance throughout the city.
