Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Renovating a Pond or Lake? New property-Old Pond Advice

I'm thinking along the same lines as Dave. You should take out all the trees plus their roots on the levee, which will probably mean an excavator. If the dam/levee doesn't have a good core, then it's better to start from square 1.

If there's a dozer on the place, use it to clear the brush around the pond. Leave a few trees for shade but clear the area out. Once the grass starts growing, you won't want to bring in heavy equipment again to get the job done quickly.

For the neighbors, I'd try like heck to work in a settling pond and a filter strip into the pond plan, or better yet, find a way to re-route the water around your pond. The nutrients that's in the livestock poop will cause you headaches. If the pond wasn't covered in DW, it probably would have been covered in FA. The DW reduced sunlight, not allowing the FA to grow. If you don't eliminate the nutrient problem, and get the DW under control, then you'll be constantly battling FA.