Hanover Township reviewed progress made toward restricting unauthorized fishing at Catasauqua Lake at a township council meeting Aug. 21.

Township Director of Public Works Jeffry Mouer commented on the ongoing situation.

"We do not have a problem during the day," he said. "There have only been a few instances."

However, there is a problem with unauthorized fishing at night, he said.

"We are increasing our patrols of the area," he said.

Solicitor J. Jackson Eaton reported the state game board has the authority to enforce state regulations around the lake.

"Even if the fishing is prohibited, someone fishing could be fined for fishing without a license," he said.

Lee Cryor, county fish and game warden, does stop by the lake frequently, according to Mouer.

The township will closely monitor the lake activity.

Frederick Hay, the township engineer, indicated some prohibitions could be removed next year as the ecology of the lake improves. According to Hay, an invasive plant was introduced into the lake.

"It is the type that is often sold with aquariums," he said.

Lake Commission representatives indicated the invasive plants and some algae buildup can be controlled with chemical additives that would not harm the fish or the habitat. According to Hay, grants are available to fund the program.

In other business, township officials introduced a new township website. The former website developer, however, was less than happy with the way the change was handled.

Deb Phillips chastised the township for not allowing her to prepare a proposal for redesigning the site.

The new website was completed by Computer Software Inc., the company that handles all the township's computer systems.

"It seemed like a logical path for the township to follow," Township Manager Sandra Pudliner said. "The new site allows us to make changes."

Also at the meeting, Hay reported wires were removed from the poles in front of the new municipal building. The plan to bury the wires has been a long time in the making.

"We have not had much cooperation from PPL on any project," Pudliner said after the meeting. "They seem to put the township on a low priority."

She cited PPL delays on the Willowbrook Drive traffic signal project.

"We had to pay overtime rates for them to remove poles," she said. There were delays in the construction of the new municipal building directly attributable to PPL and now there has been a further delay in getting poles removed.

"We had contractors scheduled in and now we need to delay that process because PPL is not honoring its commitments to us," she said.

Council also approved the capital budget. The new budget includes set-asides for a new ladder truck for Han-Le-Co Fire Company. The 2013 road improvement program will include a resurfacing of roadways on Grove Road, the lower section of Lloyd Street and Cascade Drive and reconstruction of Pennsylvania and Catasauqua roads. The contract was awarded to Bracalente Construction of Northampton.