DEP sells out the Musky

[Agust]

Trout Season is in full swing, the weather is warming and fishing license sales are up. Today thousands of trout are being stocked into the Musconetcong River. Every Friday in the spring hundreds of anglers flock to the Musconetcong River at 5PM to fish in New Jersey’s only Wild and Scenic River. On Saturday morning hundreds more show up, looking to catch trout and spend time with friends and family enjoying fishing for trout in cold clean water. It’s a time honored tradition that some folks arrange work and vacation schedules around and have been doing so for generations. The Musky is one of our states jewels and worthy of all the accolades and protection we can afford it.

Unless you are the DEP chief, then it’s just another chip to be bargained away and sacrificed for a little political favoritism. Today in the midst of trout season, on a stocking day, Mark Muriello decided to turn off flows from Lake Hopatcong into the river. Politicians and the “people of influence” on Lake Hopatcong succeeded in getting the DEP to ignore the minimum flow agreement and drop flows out of the lake into the river, essentially say screw the river we need to keep the political players on the lake satisfied.

First DEP decided to ignore the Highlands protections and allow a monster development project that directly violated the intent of the Act. Now they decide to sacrifice water quality in one of the Highlands most important waterways to still complaints by politically influential property owners. Have they forgotten their role is to protect our natural resources, not to determine which ones to sell out for political gain?

 

[Matt Grobert]

That's just wrong. Let him and the DEP know at:

http://www.nj.gov/cgi-bin/dep/contactdep.pl

NJDEP-Contact DEP

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="98%" align=center><TBODY><TR><TD class=navy12><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" bgColor=#ffffff align=center><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class=navy12 border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=navy12><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD class=navy12>Mark N. Mauriello, Commissioner
401 E. State St.
7th Floor, East Wing
P.O. Box 402
Trenton, NJ 08625-0402
phone: 609-292-2885
fax: 609-292-7695

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[westbound]

Has this been inacted? Is there documentation? I would like to get to the root of this atrocity. What are the reasons for cutting the flow? to increase the pooling of the lake? I would like to know.

Thanks />))))'>

 

[jlajoie]

From what I have seen, lake Hapatcong is well below its normal level for this time of year, With boat slips totally dry, and private owner slips that are up on dry land. The water situation isn't looking good for the lake or the river right now. There isn't even enough water in the lake for the DEP to keep up with the flow agreement into the Musky. Not that I am siding with the DEP, as I feel they have a great history of mismanagement when it comes to water flows in the NY watershed...........

 

[NJDrew]

The Daily Record had an article on this yesterday.

State cuts back amount of water being released from Lake Hopatcong | Daily Record | Daily Record

 

[Drossi]

Their pinching the water valve to the musky shut so those assholes will have enough water in the lake to sail their ocean liners by memorial day. Typically NJ Shit.

 

[Rusty Spinner]

I want to thank each of you who speaks out about this mismanagement of the flows into the upper Musky. For reasons I can't explain on an internet forum, I needed NJTU state council to address this issue with the DEP commissioner. Please contact the commissioner's office and express your outrage. This is politics as usual in NJ:bang:

Please remind the Commissioner when you contact him that the watershed essentially BEGINS at Lake Hopatcong's dam, not ENDS and the we all live downstream of someone else...

The Lake is 2.6 billion gallons low. This cutback in releases equates to 1 million gallons/day. Do the math, this will do almost nothing for the lake but will have significant negative impacts to the river system, let alone for trout fishing.

 

[coolkyle]

As I recall they ran the Musky a bit high in the fall so they could do some dock maintenance or whatever that was. So they got rid of some water for their boats... These people are idiots.

 

[Hllywd76]

These people are idiots.

they do this every 3or5 years for repairs and inspections. The lack of rain is what sucks for them. The winters when they do this are fun Snowmobiles across the lake and less falling through.

Hllywd

 

[Agust]

The Lake is 2.6 billion gallons low. This cutback in releases equates to 1 million gallons/day. Do the math, this will do almost nothing for the lake but will have significant negative impacts to the river system, let alone for trout fishing.

For the math challenged.

1 Billion = 1,000 Million.
2.6 Billion = 2,600 Million.

1 Year = 365.25 days (Need to use the .25 for leap years)

At 1 Million gallons a day, it will take 2,600 days to fill the lake. Which means that in 7 years, 43 days, 5 hours, 16 minutes and about 48 seconds the lake will finally reach normal level. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that it might rain before then.

Chances are there might even be a new Governor and DEP chief before then.

Hell of way to celebrate Earth Day, by killing a river.

Agust

 

[Dusty Miller]

The Daily Record says,

The lake was drawn down last year so the state could inspect dam structures, analyze aquatic vegetation and whether lakeshore structures need repairing.

That's essentially what coolkyle says.

Never underestimate the breadth of bureaucratic bungling.

PS Is it Dr. G who started this thread?

 

[Dr. Gonzo]

Does NJ have a law that's the equivalent of NEPA? If so I would think they'd have to conduct some form of environmental impact review before making this kind of decision. If they have, do we (anglers) have someone commenting on the review process? If they're required to do an impact assessment and have not done so it would be fairly straightforward to get an injunction at least until a review has been done. I'm guessing TU would know the answer to that one.

What about this flow management agreement? Who are the parties to that agreement and what does it say? If the state is violating this agreement than anyone who is a party to it and who is injured by the decision has standing to sue them to bring the flows back. This is the kind of thing where a court would probably grant an injunction as well - since on the one hand you're balancing potentially serious impact to the downstream ecosystem against owners aesthetic and recreational interests.

 

[lkhopatcong]

The dam out of Lake Hopatcong is NOT closed. The DEP lowered the outflow to 4.2 million gallons per day. In a drought emergency, when there is no other water entering the river, the agreed upon amount is 3 million gallons per day according to the Management Agreement that was developed for Lake Hopatcong, Lake Musconetcong, and the Musconetcong River. But right now, there IS water in the river, and in fact Lake Musconetcong is outflowing much more than Lake Hopatcong is providing. By the time you get to the gages at Bloomsbury, Lake Hopatcong is contributing less than 3% of the water there. Lake Hopatcong is one source among many.

The problem at Lake Hopatcong was NOT caused by the drawdown itself. The State forgot (or for reasons still unexplained), did not close the dam to the 7.5 million gallons per day they were supposed to on December 15th. Instead, they opened the gates to more than 100 million gallons per day by December 17th, and in the course of the 3 weeks before the ice formed, and the 1 week they left the water level stagnant in March after the ice melted, they let out 1.3 BILLION gallons they were not supposed to. Adding this to the current lake level, the lake would have been almost 2 feet higher, and nobody would be looking at doing anything special to fix the problem.

As for the delay in the drawdown having anything to do with this, that is also toally untrue. As per the gages, although people at Lake Hopatcong did ask that the DEP delay the drawdown START from September 1st to September 7th (since the labor start actually could be any of those dates), the state doubled the amount of outflow, from 3/4 inch to 1.5 inch to 'catch up', and did so. Only when the lake became unusable, did they reduce the outflow to much less, and there never was any request or agreement to delay the refill in any way, with the governing body of Lake Hopatcong, the Lake Hopatcong Commission.

As the DEP stated previously, there are many sources to the headwaters of the River, and Lake Hopatcong is just one component, it is not the sole source. This was a DEP created catastrophe, and nobody wants to kill all the fish before the fishermen get to them, but there's a whole bunch of people that fish lake Hopatcong too, and the boats cant even use most ramps yet, the water is so far out.

Where I used to see fish nests in Lake Hopatcong, now there's just sand 20 feet away from the waterline. If you want to be upset, please don't be upset with the people who use Lake Hopatcong who want to hold onto what little water they have left.

By August, when the lake also suffers from evaporation as well as outflow, the change could mean that the lake could be 8 inches higher than it would be lowered by the 7.5mgd, and that could definitely be helpful when combined with some rain.

There's people that can't even get to their homes (on islands) right now, there's businesses that can't hire back their employees, there is devastation at the lake, and I think that the DEP has to weigh all those considerations as they work to make sure that both the River and the Lake are able to survive, especially when the State played such a major part of the problem that the lake is in right now.

 

[Dr. Gonzo]

Interesting first post! You should introduce yourself to the forum while you're at it.

 

[Matt Grobert]

This was in Monday's Ledger and gives some details on the issue. With all of today's technology, can't they repair structures, etc., without drawing down the lake? They don't do this anywhere else that I know of?

N.J. officials to decide on plan to raise water level at Lake Hopatcong

by Eugene Paik/For The Star-Ledger Monday April 20, 2009, 10:25 PM

The state is expected to decide soon whether to close the dam at depleted Lake Hopatcong to help it retain water, a member of the commission that oversees the man-made lake said tonight.
"I think DEP has a grasp of the problem," Russell Felter said of the Department of Environmental Protection during a Lake Hopatcong Commission meeting. Commission member Felter also is Jefferson Township's mayor.
The panel heard a barrage of complaints from local residents and business owners who said the state failed to follow its management plan for the lake, which is located in Morris and Sussex counties.
The lake is still about 3 feet below its normal level, and those attending the meeting at the Mount Arlington Municipal Building said it's because the state mismanaged a drawdown of its waters last fall.
A deep drawdown is done once every five years to allow repairs to docks, sea walls and the dam, as well as to clean parts of the lake. A smaller drawdown of 26 inches is done each year for dock maintenance.
Tonight, the critics urged the commission to support closing the lake's dam.
"I think you guys know that there's a huge public outcry here," said Bernd Hefele, a Lake Hopatcong resident.
Some of the commissioners sympathized with the group, and the panel decided to pressure the state to treat the situation with more urgency.
Some business owners have said the lower level is hampering the boating industry and businesses -- such as markets and gas stations -- that benefit from the boaters and fishermen who use the lake.
Critics have said the state delayed the refilling of the lake by extending the drawdown by more than a week. That cost the lake an opportunity to receive 2 feet of water, they said.
The state, meanwhile, has contended the weather is largely to blame. A DEP spokeswoman earlier this month said the past three months were some of the driest on record.
The DEP later dropped the water flow from Lake Hopatcong into the Musconetcong River from 7.5 million gallons per day to the minimum 5.3 million gallons that are reportedly allowed.
According to DEP officials, shutting off the outflow valve would cause environmental harm downstream.
But those who support shutting off the flow say areas downstream are fed by other water sources and the action would not cause significant damage.
A committee of officials representing the state, Lake Hopatcong and Lake Musconetcong will review Lake Hopatcong's management plan later this year, Larry Baier, director of the DEP's Division of Watershed Management, said earlier this month.
Among the changes the committee will consider, he said, are methods that will allow the state to make repairs without drawing down the water.
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[Drossi]

Does NJ have a law that's the equivalent of NEPA?

Wouldn't matter if they did. The lovely elected gangsters would just break it the name of some dire public outcry. The power of the almighty $ rears it's head again in NJ. Business as usual. :finger:

 

[Stonefly]

:beingsick:

The dam out of Lake Hopatcong is NOT closed. The DEP lowered the outflow to 4.2 million gallons per day. In a drought emergency, when there is no other water entering the river, the agreed upon amount is 3 million gallons per day according to the Management Agreement that was developed for Lake Hopatcong, Lake Musconetcong, and the Musconetcong River. But right now, there IS water in the river, and in fact Lake Musconetcong is outflowing much more than Lake Hopatcong is providing. By the time you get to the gages at Bloomsbury, Lake Hopatcong is contributing less than 3% of the water there. Lake Hopatcong is one source among many.

The problem at Lake Hopatcong was NOT caused by the drawdown itself. The State forgot (or for reasons still unexplained), did not close the dam to the 7.5 million gallons per day they were supposed to on December 15th. Instead, they opened the gates to more than 100 million gallons per day by December 17th, and in the course of the 3 weeks before the ice formed, and the 1 week they left the water level stagnant in March after the ice melted, they let out 1.3 BILLION gallons they were not supposed to. Adding this to the current lake level, the lake would have been almost 2 feet higher, and nobody would be looking at doing anything special to fix the problem.

As for the delay in the drawdown having anything to do with this, that is also toally untrue. As per the gages, although people at Lake Hopatcong did ask that the DEP delay the drawdown START from September 1st to September 7th (since the labor start actually could be any of those dates), the state doubled the amount of outflow, from 3/4 inch to 1.5 inch to 'catch up', and did so. Only when the lake became unusable, did they reduce the outflow to much less, and there never was any request or agreement to delay the refill in any way, with the governing body of Lake Hopatcong, the Lake Hopatcong Commission.

As the DEP stated previously, there are many sources to the headwaters of the River, and Lake Hopatcong is just one component, it is not the sole source. This was a DEP created catastrophe, and nobody wants to kill all the fish before the fishermen get to them, but there's a whole bunch of people that fish lake Hopatcong too, and the boats cant even use most ramps yet, the water is so far out.

Where I used to see fish nests in Lake Hopatcong, now there's just sand 20 feet away from the waterline. If you want to be upset, please don't be upset with the people who use Lake Hopatcong who want to hold onto what little water they have left.

By August, when the lake also suffers from evaporation as well as outflow, the change could mean that the lake could be 8 inches higher than it would be lowered by the 7.5mgd, and that could definitely be helpful when combined with some rain.

There's people that can't even get to their homes (on islands) right now, there's businesses that can't hire back their employees, there is devastation at the lake, and I think that the DEP has to weigh all those considerations as they work to make sure that both the River and the Lake are able to survive, especially when the State played such a major part of the problem that the lake is in right now.

The first main source of water into the Musky below the Lake is Lubbers Run, who's flow is also down because of the lack of rain.

There are NO MAJOR STREAMS OR CREEKS THAT FEED THE MUSKY, only small streams that right now are at a trickle. I have been stocking the river for the last three weeks, and can report the poor conditions in the SMALL feeder streams. Add that as the Musky falls do to this negligent act by the DEP Commissioner, towns that draw water from the Musky will being having trouble. The river is very low at the Bloomsbury Water Works; I was their today! AND it is a FACT the the draw down was delayed to extend the boating season! To say there are many sources, is a stupid statement, the Lake is the MAIN and PRIMARY SOURCE! So for the use of the boaters and business on the Lake we screw everyone down stream and the river its self . So Anglers can get more water in the lake for their fishing boats, we lower the temps in the river and kill the trout already stocked! No drought emergency has been declared, as we are not in a drought emergency, so turning down the flows to the river shouldn't be allowed. Multiple towns on the Musky below the lake rely on this river for their drinking water, the residents and businesses on the Lake do not!

 

[Dr. Gonzo]

Wouldn't matter if they did. The lovely elected gangsters would just break it the name of some dire public outcry. The power of the almighty $ rears it's head again in NJ. Business as usual. :finger:

Actually if they do, and they broke it, they can be sued to have the law enforced. In this case it would likely mean a temporary injunction preventing the state from releasing anything below normal flows until they've done the necessary review to assess the environmental impact of the decision to restrict the water coming out of the lake.

 

[Drossi]

but there's a whole bunch of people that fish lake Hopatcong too, and the boats cant even use most ramps yet, the water is so far out. You mean the cabin cruisers can't use the lake because of the lack of dept by the dock areas. If you really cared about the fisherman then why not ban the giant gas motors that are poluting the lake into an oil slick.

If you want to be upset, please don't be upset with the people who use Lake Hopatcong who want to hold onto what little water they have left. You mean the soci-elite who think the water is more important for them to have in the lake than those that live downstream.

There's people that can't even get to their homes (on islands) calling them homes is like calling the Hope diamond a chipright now, there's businesses that can't hire back their employees, there is devastation at the lake, and I think that the DEP has to weigh all those considerations as they work to make sure that both the River and the Lake are able to survive You mean F the river, the acid puddle..err...lake is where the $ at., especially when the State played such a major part of the problem that the lake is in right now.Those damn politicians better remember where there votes a paid for.

Calling it as I see it.

 

[Pete]

Does anyone know the position of the Knee Deep Club on this issue?

They claim to be a conservation group....
I looked around their website this morning, after I saw Agust's post, and didn't find anything neither pro nor con.

 

[lkhopatcong]

:beingsick:

....towns that draw water from the Musky will being having trouble. The river is very low at the Bloomsbury Water Works; I was their today!"
[If you are concerned about having water at Bloomsbury, you don't need 'extra water' there now, you need Lake Hopatcong to continue being an emergency water source, and have it hold the water until its really needed downstream. ]

AND it is a FACT the the draw down was delayed to extend the boating season!
[yes, the drawdown was delayed one week to extend the boating season. Instead of Labor Day (first Monday in September) falling on the 7th, it fell on the 1st, and the DEP was kind enough to let people use the lake an extra week. But so what, the DEP then doubled the draindown from 3/4 inch to 1.5 inch per day until they caught up, so has nothing to do with delaying the refill or anything else]

"To say there are many sources, is a stupid statement, the Lake is the MAIN and PRIMARY SOURCE! "
[Look at the USGS gage at Bloomsbury. It shows 168cfs today. Even at 7.5mgd (11.7cfs), Lake Hopatcong obviously isn't the only source, and the piddly 1.1mgd they cut Lake Hopatcong outflow down by is 1.7cfs, about 1% of the total water at Bloomsbury]

....No drought emergency has been declared, as we are not in a drought emergency, so turning down the flows to the river shouldn't be allowed. Multiple towns on the Musky below the lake rely on this river for their drinking water, the residents and businesses on the Lake do not!"
[actually, there are plenty of people that depend on Lake Hopatcong directly for drinking water, someone complained when their water intake line got cut by a weed harvester just last year. And if people depend on the water downstream for drinking, they obviously have enough right now, and as noted, there is not a drought emergency. So you really want Lake Hopatcong water to just be added to what ends up in the ocean, instead of waiting to be released when you really need it?].

"
Comments are inline above.

And actually, the best time to have Lake Hopatcong restrict outflow is when there are other sources of water. Once a drought is in effect, if Lake Hopatcong outflow is then lowered, that's the worst time for downstream. You really should want lake Hopatcong to hold onto the water rather than extra water going by Bloomsbury, etc, and then not having it later when you really need it for drinking, etc.

I'm not responding to other comments from others that seem to be more about thinking that Lake Hopatcong is just a big oil slick caused by enormous boats at enormous homes. Its that kind of attitude that will have Lake Hopatcong spilling water while there's enough downstream, and then not available later if there is a state drought, and keep working people out of jobs at a desperate time.

Every inch of rainfall is about 3 inches that Lake hopatcong rises, its really critical that people give Lake Hopatcong a chance.

 

[Rusty Spinner]

Does anyone know the position of the Knee Deep Club on this issue?

They claim to be a conservation group....
I looked around their website this morning, after I saw Agust's post, and didn't find anything neither pro nor con.

I don't want to speak for their club, but I have been in constant contact with at least one of their officers and they feel as we do. Cutting back flows to the upper watershed will do zippo for the lake but it will cause significant problems for the upper river and its aquatic life. Not just trout, but the food that trout eat.

lkhopatcong is obviously connected to the lake's business community and he/she is right to be upset, but only lots and lots of rain will make a difference right now for the lake. But for the river, this cut-back will be lethal to our trout in a very short time. With air temps reaching the upper 80s this weekend and very little flows, dissolved oxygen will drop, predation will increase and the trout will suffer.

This is not about the gauge at Bloomsbury, the Musky runs almost 43 miles below the dam at Lake Hopatcong. There are more than 20 tributaries and numerous springs that will protect the lower river. This is about the upper river which lacks both tribs and cold water springs. And just remember, everything is connected and everyone lives downstream from someone.

The lake is an emergency drinking water supply for the Jersey City reservoir system which is true, but that reservoir is holding ample water. This is about the business owners which pressured the DEP last fall to delay the draw-down now pointing fingers at the same agency and crying "foul". They can't have their cake and eat it too. Pray for rain because the DEP Commissioner just sold out the very same environment he was appointed to protect...welcome to New Jersey.

I would only ask our Commissioner one question. What did our proffessional biologists recommend in this situation to protect the watershed? I know that answer to that question but you won't hear it from the Commish. Just as with the bear hunting situation - politics trumps science everytime in the Garden State.

 

[lkhopatcong]

1) I responded with data regarding bloomsbury, because someone commented that cutting Lake Hopatcong outflow was bad for Bloomsbury, but at only 3% of bloomsbury cfs contributed by Lk Hopatcong when Lk Hopatcong is even at its normal minimum, its not that critical.
2) At Lake Musconetcong, it is already spilling more water than Lake Hopatcong gives it, and is releasing MORE than the 7.5mgd minimum. So obviously nobody should be complaining below Lake Musconetcong.
3) For the people who fish in the short section between the 2 lakes, hopefully fish will migrate to where there is water if the outflow from Lake Hopatcong lowers slowly, such as the change that just occurred.
4) that one section of stream, about 1 mile is alot less water than what would happen if Lake Hopatcong had some more water. The next foot of water in Lake Hopatcong will probably cover about 20 feet of exposed shoreline that is now mud, where fish used to nest, etc.
5) Lake Hopatcong rises about triple the amount of rainfall, so it is NOT hopeless, and ever little bit counts.
6) I agree that all areas are important, but do you really believe that all of Lake Hopatcong should be unreachable from most boat ramps, a mud flat, etc, because of just one mile of stream on a river that goes all the way to Bloomsbury plus some? Lake Hopatcong has multiple functions, which include fishing and other sports, and you can see on the Kneedeepclub site that they stock trout too. Shouldn't all people be able to put their boats in the lake and fish too?
7) I am just a homeowner very concerned about the lake. I empathize with the thousands of people who wanted to use the lake, who might have jobs at the lake that have been postponed, and even the fish who have been blocked from their traditional spawning areas.
8) The problem at the lake does NOT have anything to do with the drawdown being delayed. It was only delayed one week, and the DEP doubled the drawdown rate from 3/4 inch to 1.5 inch, just look at the USGS gages, its crystal clear. And check any Lake Hopatcong Commission minutes, there was NEVER any agreement that mentioned any delaying of refill, since especially the drawdown was unaffected by the delay. The management plan called for the drawdown to start the day after Labor day and run until the 3rd or 4th of October. Labor Day is the first Monday or September, anywhere from 9/1 to 9/7. The Dep started the drawdown before 9/7, obviously unrelated to leaving the dam open an extra 22 days starting 12/15, and unrelated to leaving the dam open in early March. (by open, I mean more than the minimum outflow that was supposed to be used).
9) Nobody at Lake Hopatcong had their cake, to use the analogy. The state rushed to drawdown the lake to an unusable state in the fall, then when the boats were out, they stalled the rest of the drawdown until November 30th instead of being done by October 30th. Then they ignored the refill, keeping the lake level constant, never doing the 7.5mgd until March 10th, and then by March 16th, Mother Nature was being blamed for the lake not rising 3 feet the first week it was allowed to rise at all. (everything else was being spilled out of the dam at DEP control, an extra 1.4 Billion gallons or so beyond the official management plan, almost 2 extra feet outflowed).
10) Rumor has it that like 20 years ago, there was state construction happening, this time at a site by the Hopatcong train station, and NJ politics seems to provide for special handling in such situations. Its on record at least once that the refill was delayed for the benefit of that construction, as well as for nameless individuals who supposedly only had to call the state (around the Commission who had no say in the issue), and ask for a refill delay, and got it. Not sure exactly what happened, but the good news is that I saw people fishing from that site this week, so at least people who don't need to park a car (its state property 1/2 mile from the State park entrance), but take a train to Hopatcong, have a place to fish from at least that spot of shoreline.

I really am reaching out to people downstream because we really are all tied together, just as others have mentioned in their postings. I'm hoping that if people realize what happened, other than those who just want to bash Lake Hopatcong or the Commissioners, that people will recognize that we all want to make sure that overall, NJ makes the most effective use of the resources we have. And this was not self-inflicted at Lake Hopatcong.

I certainly think it is disappointing, given the cost of raising fish to stock the river, that given that the DEP knew of the localized emergency in Lake Hopatcong, that they went ahead and put fish where they might jeopardize all the activities of an entire 2500+ acre lake. Hopefully the fish will migrate if the levels are not best for them where they were placed. But please don't make it any harder on Lake Hopatcong as you enjoy the rest of the Musconetcong river, and hopefully Lake Hopatcong as well, and even loving fish, or loving to catch them, please don't let one stocking location block the recovery of the State's largest lake from state errors. There certainly could be times when the Lake has water and downstream needs more, and cooperation, and looking at the big picture will always be important.

 

[Catskill Mountain Man]

someone is a laker...

 

[Agust]

Lkhopatcong, is obviously trying to do damage control.
No one is denying the draw down was mishandled, or that the lake is low or that businesses are hurting.

All we are saying is that lowering the outflow below minimum standard will not help the lake, but is hurting the river.

DEP and folks like lkhopatcong are compounding an already bad situation at the lake and creating a worse one in the river. This is a simple case of two wrongs, and contrary to the long winded plea made by the folks involved in the lake it still does not equate to a right.

Killing the river will not fix the lake, it simply kills the river.

 

[The Royal Coachman]

While I do have sympathy for those who make their living from the lake I've seen many of these 5 year draw downs. A few times it seemed like the lake would never fill up but it always has. To get a 3 day blow in May is not out of the question, really even into early June.

But to deny the upper Musky the water it is guaranteed by law to give the lake a negligible amount of water is an unequitable solution to this problem. I like to take my daughters to Stephen's State Park during in season stocking. Why should we and those trout pay the price for the DEP's mishandling of the draw down.

BTW...who's fault is it at the DEP? How come in goverment work you can really F*&K UP and nothing happens? In the private secter this person would more than likely loose their job.........don't get me started, what a bunch of :dickhead:

I know the people on the lake don't want to hear this but I think they should just let nature take it's coarse. That and maybe revisit the drawdown policy, but leave the river out of it.

 

[Stonefly]

Rivers are a living thing, with the shortage of rain fall they lower, get a good one day down pour where the ground ges soaked, better run off, and the gage at Bloomsburg will look good, lower the out flow from the lake and the water in the river will slowly drop, WHY, because it doesn't stop flowing! So as the flow from Lake Hopatcong reduces, the event takes days to travel down river, some sections will reduce faster where the river is shallow and wider, such as the area by Seber Grove, it gains speed a little below Hacketstown, and the pools coming before Penwell, but with reduced flows, drops and warms up as it comes over the dam and flows into the Point Mountain TCA. lkhopactcongs lack of knowledge on river flows, and run off shows. IF and a big if, Lake Hopactong is taped during "declared drought emergency" it doesn't get taped for those on the lake or down stream, it gets piped east.

 

[rossk]

Guys,

As some may know, there is actually a state management plan (Lake Hopatcong Water Level Management Plan) governing the release from Lake Hopatcong. You can see it at this site - <!-- m -->Lake Hopatcong Commisssion site<!-- m -->.

According to this plan:
"During the period March 15th through Labor day, unless delayed by hard spring ice (able to support 100 lbs.) the Lake Hopatcong Dam control gates are kept closed to a minimum stream of 7.5 mgd (12 cfs) as measured at Hopatcong Dam. In times of drought the minimum stream flow from Lake Hopatcong may be reduced to, but not less than 3 mgd (5.1 cfs) as directed by the Commissioner of the NJ DEP. The minimum stream flow may be extended through October 31st depending on the winter drawdown schedule."

Whether this has legal weight, I don't know. But the current release of 4.2 mgd does meet the lower requirement of 3 mgd. However, my concern is the wording "times of drought". Currently we are not in a drought warning, watch or emergency. So, why the reduction?

I have a lot of experience with these issues. If there are groups that need some advice, give me a call. Happy to assist. For now I would say, get a lawyer!

 

[Agust]

Guys,
But the current release of 4.2 mgd does meet the lower requirement of 3 mgd. However, my concern is the wording "times of drought". Currently we are not in a drought warning, watch or emergency. So, why the reduction?

The why is because of pressure from Bucco on DEP, the reason he is applying pressure is because some very profitable businesses around the lake, along with some very affluent land owners on the lake, have demanded he do something.

I think its a simple case of rare bipartisan support. Senator Bucco's political contributions are at risk, and the folks in Trenton want to help. After all both political partys know that risk of losing funding is much greater than the risk of losing a river.

What is most disturbing is that the DEP appears to have spent Earth Day talking about saving resources, while at the same time deciding to sacrifice the only Wild and Scenic river in the state. At least they waited until the next day.

There is no drought condition, the lake is low because of a variety of bad decisions beginning last fall, they want it raise the water level so boating is possible. What is most frustrating is that lowering the releases by this amount will do nothing to help the lake, and with 90 degree temps today will basically kill all the trout between Hopatcong and Musconetcong, as well exacerbating the low water conditions in the rest of the valley.

 

[Pete]

.....; and with 90 degree temps today will basically kill all the trout between Hopatcong and Musconetcong,......

If that happens. See the section I've boldfaced below....

DEP Allows Temporary Water Flow Reduction from Lake Hopatcong
April 3, 2009

Relatively dry weather conditions have delayed Lake Hopatcong’s recovery from a recent 5-foot drawdown. As a result, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has allowed a temporary adjustment in its management of the water level to assist in the recovery of the lake’s surface elevation.

The DEP’s water level management plan allows the lake to be lowered 5 feet every five years to allow for inspection of the dam structure, property owners’ repairs to lakeshore structures, aquatic vegetation control, and silt and drainage material removal from areas around the lake. This 5-foot drawdown commenced last fall, and the lake is now refilling.

The reduction of outflow from the lake will reduce the standard passing flow of 7.5 million gallons per day (mgd) or 12 cubic feet per second (cfs) to the minimum flow allowed of 5.3 mgd or 8.2 cfs. Maintaining the minimum flow rate is critical to protect aquatic life in the downstream reaches of the Musconetcong River, which flows from Lake Hopatcong. It also will ensure appropriate water levels in the river for opening day of trout season on April 11.

The DEP will closely monitor downstream conditions. If, for any reason, the flow rate is insufficient to protect and maintain aquatic life, the DEP will immediately order the resumption of the standard passing flow from Lake Hopatcong.

Normal outflow conditions will resume when the lake is once again at an appropriate level.

Based on the link posted by NJDrew, the above numbers may be out of date, BUT:
If they mean it, and someone sends them (and the press) pictures of a significant fish kill......