Looking back over numerous conversations back and forth on the comments section of Balancing the Basin it appears there may be a major misunderstanding about what Save Our Lakes Now is suggesting concerning drought management. Our suggestion is to hold lake levels constant as long as release rates can be maintained at 3600cfs or higher. Once 3600cfs is reached, our suggestion is to continue 3600cfs for the duration of the drought to minimize the total impact on lake interests.
Looking more closely at the objections to this there seems to be an underlying argument from naysayers that this will only help a little in terms of minimum levels reached. What seems to be misunderstood is we are only asking for a little help. Following this strategy until the drought is over the drop in lake level should be less than 10'. While a drop of 10' is not desirable, it is not disastrous. Launching ramps are still useable, marina problems are minimal, recreation is still possible, and impact on property values is tolerable.
Again, we feel lake interests are not adequately consulted on drought measures. We are not asking to destroy downstream interests. We are simply suggesting a better compromise between the various options available. The primary challenge to this approach is it would impact power quotas more. We feel strongly that the value of fresh water saved and recreational dollars salvaged far outweigh the impact on power costs to the consumer. Power quotas need to be weighed against real costs to recreation and not just followed blindly.
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