Goldfish taking over West Medical Lake ponds

MEDICAL LAKE – State-planted trout are competing with goldfish for food in the four West Medical Lake ponds.

As a result, state officials want use Rotenone in the ponds to eradicate the goldfish population.

Although goldfish are the “target species” of the “naturally occurring” poison, Rotenone is highly toxic to all “gill-breathing organisms, state documents on its use show.

Before poisoning the ponds – formed with the water level in West Medical Lake declines in warmer months – the state Department of Fish and Wildlife wants to hear from residents and local fishermen.

The agency will be host...