Back to a natural state

If the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has its way, Badger Lake south of Cheney will return to being a first-class lowland trout fishery.

WDFW officials heard testimony on the plan from about 20 people last Wednesday at the Cheney Library. The lake is one of three Eastern Washington state fisheries biologists want to treat with rotenone, an organic agent that kills fish by keeping their gills from processing oxygen.

“Out of those, about three were Badger Lake residents who were in favor of the proposal,” WDFW fish biologist Randy Osborne wrote in an email. “One of them who I talked...