Published: January 25, 2007 08:29 am      

Congressman Rogers is thinking safety first regarding dam crisis

Congressman Hal Rogers is like most Pulaski Countians when it comes to the Wolf Creek Dam crisis — he’s a little worried about the ramifications.

But he agrees with the Army Corps of Engineers’ safety-first tact.

"I am obviously concerned with the Corps’ decision to lower Lake Cumberland to 680 feet,” Rogers said yesterday. “Thousands of people in southern and eastern Kentucky depend on Lake Cumberland for their livelihood, and there are economic consequences affecting the entire region.

”However, public safety has to be the top priority,” the congressman added. “I have been engaged at the top levels of the Corps of Engineers for several months to determine the best way to resolve this problem. The Corps utilized a panel of experts using sound engineering and science methodology to reach their conclusion. Reducing pressure on the dam now enables repairs to proceed and will ultimately lead to the lake returning to normal levels.”

Because of the unstable structural condition of Wolf Creek Dam, Lake Cumberland is being lowered to 680 feet above sea level and will remain at that level throughout 2007. Normal water levels are 723 feet during the tourist season and 690 feet in the wintertime.

The lake at summer pool has about 65,000 acres of water averaging 90 feet deep. It has 1,255 miles of shoreline.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced Monday that the lake level is being lowered immediately to 43 feet below the tree line to relieve pressure on Wolf Creek Dam. The 5,738-foot-long earthen and concrete dam that impounds Lake Cumberland has been declared at “high risk” for structural failure and a seven-year rehabilitation is under way.

”The task before us is to make the best of this situation,” Rogers said. “I will work closely with the Corps, federal, state and local officials to launch a mitigation plan to alleviate the economic impact. This potentially includes extending docks, launch ramps and roadways, improving parking and campsites, and installing lake navigational aides.

”Also, I am pushing the Corps to move ahead with all possible speed on dam repairs. Specifically, this means identifying ways to move up the estimated 2012 completion date,” Rogers continued. “In the meantime, a short-term repair is slated for completion in the early fall. There again, I am urging that project be completed by the summer and that Lake Cumberland levels can be raised sooner, rather than later."