Chautauqua Lake levels will be lowered starting October 20th.
Chautauqua County Watershed Coordinator Dave McCoy said boat owners should prepare to remove their boats and docks from the water prior to that date.
McCoy said the Warner Dam will be opened October 20th and Chautauqua Lake levels will trend downward for the winter season.
The Warner Dam, located along the Chadakoin River in Jamestown is owned by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and is operated by the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities. The Dam is operated following a rule curve and serves a primary role of reducing flood damage to homes surrounding Chautauqua Lake. The BPU opens the dam annually during the fall and winter months in an effort to lower the lake level and reduce potential flooding and shoreline damage by ice sheets in the winter and spring.
McCoy added that maintaining the recreational lake level presented some challenges in 2021 due to an unusually dry spring, which was followed by almost three times the normal amount of rain in July, with high lake levels and flooding caused by intense rainfall events. Since then, the County has had enough rainfall to properly maintain lake levels.
To view current and past U.S. Geological Survey hydrological data on lake levels and Chadakoin River stage and discharge, visit chautauquaalliance.org/resources.
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