WHICH IS IT? DOES THE CORPS CONSIDER ECONOMICS IN SETTING RELEASE RATES OR NOT?

Repeatedly we have asked the Corps to decrease release rates because of the huge impact low lake levels have on the recreation infrastructure around the lakes.  By recreation infrastructure we mean real estate built for lake access and lake view, campgrounds, marinas, and all the many investments related to recreation around the lakes.  Each time the Corps has assured us they are not permitted to consider economics when determining release rates.

 

Now, in the most recent issue of balancing the basin, Billy Birdwell explains that the Corps is now able to hold a 3800cfs release rate because they have met their power quotas with SEPA.  The only reason power quotas are important is that power purchased to replace hydro power shortages costs more than hydropower produced by our lakes.  I may be confused but it seems to me that cost of power is nothing more than an economic consideration.  Surely I must be mistaken because the cost of monetary losses to recreational infrastructure from low lake levels dwarfs the added cost of power.  Matter of fact the total value of power produced on all three of our lakes is peanuts compared to the economic losses from low lake levels exceeding a drop of 10’.

 

What I see happening violates good engineering principles.  Good engineering means to use the information at hand to the full extent possible to perform a task such as managing our basins rather than wait for a perfect solution based on endless studies. The data from all the droughts of the past decade is more than sufficient to avoid drops in lake level in excess of 8-10’ while avoiding problems to downstream interests.  Instead the Corps makes endless excuses to avoid the changes needed.  While you can always learn more from further studies, there is no need to wait for these studies before making changes that will prevent the devastation we keep experiencing every time a drought occurs.  Save Our Lakes Now has outlined a sound approach to drought control in our previous blogs but to date there is no evidence that the Corps plans to incorporate these changes.

 

I ask again is Save Our Lakes Now the only organization concerned about this and other inconsistencies in the way the Corps is controlling our lakes.  Where are our congressmen and the other lake organizations when it comes to getting the Corps to optimize the drought plan for the Savannah River Basin.