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Response from FERC about Lake Wylie AccessWe have completed our review of your hotline complaint regarding Duke Energy's (Duke) closure of boat ramps on Lake Wylie, near Charlotte, NC. As you know, Lake Wylie is a component of one of several hydroelectric developments comprising Duke's Catawba-Wateree Project (FERC No. 2232). Based on the following information obtained from Duke's Lake Services Group, and other sources, we find that Duke is acting in a reasonable and responsible manner with respect to the public access requirements of its project license.
· Due to on-going drought conditions, and resulting low lake levels, Duke has closed the boat launching ramps at five of its public access areas on Lake Wylie. Duke has closed these access facilities after carefully weighing and balancing all relevant factors, including public safety, security, and the loss of recreational boating opportunities. The only public boat ramps that are currently open on the lake are at Duke’s Nivens Creek access area. Duke is closely monitoring the drought/lake-level situation and will take further access-related actions, as conditions and circumstances require. Continuously updated information on the drought, and on water levels and boat-ramp closings for all Catawba-Wateree reservoirs, is available to the public on Duke’s website at www.duke-energy.com. In the future, Duke intends to issue news releases to notify the public of ramp re-openings, when improving water levels allow.
· Improvements made to the boat ramps at the Nivens Creek and Ebenezer access areas during the 2002 drought have increased their availability during subsequent low-lake-level periods. Duke has stated that it will continue to apply the knowledge and experience it gained in 2002 as it makes improvements to its access areas in the future. Presently, Duke is making efforts to enhance the boat launching facilities at its South Point access area to improve their availability. Overall, covering 10 years of records, Duke’s boat launching facilities on Lake Wylie have been available for public use 98 percent of the time.
· Duke’s lake services personnel recently conducted an on-site investigation of the Buster Boyd access area on Lake Wylie to assess the feasibility of extending the length of its launch ramps to restore their availability. As a result of this assessment, Duke determined that extending this area’s ramps by as much as 50 feet would provide only about six inches of water over the extended part of the ramp. Therefore, such ramp extensions are not warranted at this location.
· Although the boat ramps at five of Duke’s access areas on the lake are currently closed, these areas still remain open for carry-in launching of small boats. Also, all the access areas at Mountain Island Lake, and most of the access areas at Lake Norman are currently open. These lakes, which are part of Duke’s Catawba-Wateree Project, also provide excellent recreational opportunities for boaters who live in the vicinity of Charlotte.
Thank you for your concern about the availability of boat launching ramps at Duke’s access areas on Lake Wylie. Your understanding and patience are appreciated during this exceptionally challenging period.
2007-12-03 15:27:26
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