Corps continues lake drawdowns

SANDPOINT - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects the drafting of Lake Pend Oreille to be completed by the middle of next month.

The lake will be lowered to 2,051 feet above sea level, which is several feet lower than last year's winter pool.

The Idaho Department of Fish & Game and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service are expected to finalize their winter elevation request next week, the corps said.

Those agencies - plus the corps, the National Marine Fisheries Service, Bonneville Power Administration and stakeholders up and downstream - are recommending the lower winter pool.

The female kokanee spawner population in Lake Pend Oreille, spawning success of chum salmon on the Lower Columbia and precipitation forecasts for the basin factored into the request for a lower lake level, according to the corps.

Idaho Fish & Game officials recommended a lower pool because there are only about 31,000 female kokanee spawners, which means there will be enough spawning habitat. Fish & Game usually recommends a higher winter pool if the spawning population is more than 70,000 fish.

Avista Utilities plans to begin its annual drawdown of Priest Lake on Oct. 13.

Avista operates the Priest Lake Dam on behalf of the Idaho Department of Water Resources, which determines when the drawdown commences.

Priest Lake is expected to drop 3 feet and reach its winter pool by early November.

n Information about the lake level can be found on the Web (www.nwd-wc.usace.army.mil/nws/hh/basins/pend.html).