The average daily flow is about 970 cubic ft/sec. The lowest ever recorded flow for the Fox River at Berlin was 328 cubic ft/sec in 1988 the second lowest flow was 382 in 2012. So for all the droughts since 1898, including the dust bowl years, the second lowest flow for July 12 was this Thursday. We are about 61% below normal in flow. It is impossible to prepare for such an event with the Princeton Dam, even if we knew it was coming.
Lake Puckaway Protection and Rehabilitation District News and Information
Saturday, July 14, 2012
How LOW is it?
I thought I would take a look at historical water levels to just how low the water is currently on Lake Puckaway. Daily water levels for Puckaway do not currently exist and any historical records are not at my fingertips. Since Puckaway is just a natural widening of the Fox River, given a healthy boost by the Princeton Dam, numbers from the Fox River at Berlin should give us an idea of historical significance of current conditions. Gauge height readings are not easily available for a long period at Berlin, but flow in cubic feet per second, is available on the USGS website going back to 1898. A long time. I looked at July 12th's in history.
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Probaly couldn't avoid it altogether ,But I think we could of made it less severe or delayed the fish kill giving ourselves a better chance for rain.After all thats what the Princeton dam is for right?I don't have a degree in lake management' but I do have 30 + years expierence and intentionaly lowering the level of of this lake to promote weed growth is risky and well frankly.....RIDICULOUS!
ReplyDeleteHad they not taken the boards off the dam at all this year, we would still be at record low levels. I don't have a degree in lake management, nor do I claim 30+ years of experience raising and lowering lake levels and documenting the effects. I will say that if there was an easy and cheap solution to the problem, there wouldn't be a problem.
ReplyDeleteKeeping the lake as deep as possible has not worked for the past 40 years. We have not had a spring in the past two where lower lake levels were available to encourage growth when the water is at its clearest.
I'm not willing to write off the plan due to the worst drought in decades. There are hundreds of lakes with fish kills throughout the midwest, not just Puck.
Your claim of keeping the lake as deep as possible for the last 40 years is a complete fabrication of the truth. I don't have 30+ years or a degree,but it appears the high water (your claim not mine)of the past two springs has delayed "THE PLAN" from doing any damage for at least two years. Mother nature shows no mercy to the foolish.Last years carp removeal was a great success. Keep the carp out and the lake deep and we'll be able to handle all mother nature has to offer.
DeleteWater level management is more nuanced the just depth. Timing of level change, and also long term stability are big factors. I will not state what is high or low water in reference to the management of Princeton Dam. High or low is subjective. The information I have available to me says that when the US Army Corps of Engineers managed the dam they placed on 12” of boards in the 1970’s the DNR began placing 18” of boards on the dam. My understanding is the DNR did not always stick with 18”, but sometimes put on more boards. The latter statement was from a person with many years of experience on the lake and the prior statements come from the LPPRD’s dam fact sheet. So while the lake is not kept as deep as possible for 40 years it is likely it was kept deeper for the last 40 years than the 80 or 90 years before. However, I can’t back that up with hard data.
ReplyDeleteKeeping the water higher than the current plan comes with many drawbacks and its own potential disasters. First higher water at the beginning of a flood event will create a larger more destructive flood. This could have disastrous consequences for low lying property owners, flooding homes, cottages, out buildings etc. Also during large flooding events wetlands can break up and float away and shorelines can be eroded. The potential exists for landowners to lose property permanently. In-lake vegetation can also be destroyed, damaging the fishery.
High water does NOT equal clearer water. A visit to the Winnebago Upper Pool Lakes illustrates this. Water clarity is slightly better there, but lakes are deeper than boards on the Princeton Dam could ever increase Puckaway.
The issue of water levels is a major factor in some of Puckaway’s problems, but lack of clear water, heavy nutrient loads, lack of vegetation, and carp are also major issues. Tackling just one of these will not solve all our problems; they must all be worked on together.
high or low water is subjective? I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say when water levels get low enough to cause you to have to pick dead fish off your shore line most would consider that low. 4 or 5 years ago when we were replacing drywall in our cabin most would consider that high. Just an opinoin from someone without a degree or 30 to 40 yrs experiance.
DeleteFish died because of high temps that are not directly because of low water levels. Think about the long term here, you get the vegetation started and it will improve the lake for many years, high water or low.
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