The level of water at Lake Cumberland – depending on the cooperation of Mother Nature and spring rains, should reach normal summer pool levels of 723 feet above sea level this summer.

That announcement came last week from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that noted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had finalized a Biological Opinion in regards to the endangered species of fish that had been discovered up strean in the Big South Fork.

The level of Lake Cumberland has been drastically lowered since 2007 while work at Wolf Creek Dam was completed to address leaks in the structure.

A concrete wall construction to stop the leaks has been completed, and inspections revealed that the process had in fact successfully stopped the flow of water through and below the dam, and plans were to begin raising the lake level to the normal summer poll height of 723 feet.

During the wall construction, the lake level had been lowered to 680 feet, some 40 feet below normal summer pool.

This winter, the discoverey of the endangered species – the duskytail darter – was announced, along with the announcement that a study would have to be completed as to the impact to the fish when the water level was raised back to normal summer pool levels.

The lower levels, and the bad publicity that has followed it, was thought to have resulted in a negative impact on local and regional tourism trades.

Tourism officials and marina owners and operators, are hoping that last week’s favorable announcement will result in higher water levels for the approaching summer tourism season, bringing with it a higher visitation rate to the Lake Cumberland region.

The announcement by the USACE, was preceded by just minutes by a joint announcement from several Washington D.C. lawmakers who represent the area affected by the Lake Cumberland tourism business.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Congressmen Hal Rogers (KY-05) and Ed Whitfield (KY-01) announced that Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell personally informed them that Lake Cumberland’s water level will be restored to 723 feet by mid-May.

The members said, “Recently we met with Administration officials to request that the water levels of Lake Cumberland be restored to pre-2007 water levels in a timely manner, and we appreciate the Secretary of the Interior making an expedited, 45-day decision for their Biological Opinion, which prompted the Corps to sign the order today allowing water levels to be restored to 723 feet – levels adequate to support robust tourism in 2014. This announcement is great news for the thousands of people who rely on the lake for recreation and tourism, and to the local communities, businesses, and individuals whose livelihoods are being impacted because of the lower water levels.”

According to the official announcement by the USACE, it was noted that working closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over the past few months, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Monday finalized the Biological Opinion that clears the way for the Corps to resume normal operations at Lake Cumberland immediately.

With formal consultation complete, today Brig. Gen. Margaret Burcham, commanding general, Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, made the decision to allow Lake Cumberland to rise to a target elevation of 723 feet this summer, which is the normal elevation at the beginning of the recreation season. The Corps and staff from the Service’s Kentucky Field Office implemented an expedited review and analysis process to complete the Biological Opinion in less than 45 days. The normal consultation process allows up to 135 days. The Biological Opinion is posted at http://www.fws.gov/southeast/.

“As a result of the Biological Opinion and Brig. Gen. Burcham’s decision to increase the pool elevation, we will begin immediately to capture water in Lake Cumberland,” said Lt. Col. John Hudson, commander, Nashville District. “Reaching our target peak elevation of 723 feet this year will be dependent on the amount and timing of rainfall.”

The completion of the Biological Opinion was the final piece of information required to make a decision about the Lake Cumberland pool level. The dam safety remedial measures had previously been reviewed by Corps dam safety professionals, who recommended returning the lake to normal operations for 2014.

The Corps discovered the duskytail darter, listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, during a required biological survey associated with the dam safety project at Wolf Creek Dam. Duskytail darters were found at seven new locations in the headwaters portion of the Big South Fork embayment in Lake Cumberland in stream habitat that was exposed during the drawdown.

“Collectively, these measures will help minimize impacts to the species and ensure the duskytail darter’s future survival in the Big South Fork,” said Lee Andrews, Field Office supervisor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Kentucky. “We understand the recreational and economic importance of Lake Cumberland in southeast Kentucky and have worked closely with the Corps to expedite this review. This is another good example of how our implementation of the Endangered Species Act can balance economic and other human needs with the needs of our rarest species.”

The Corps and the Service agreed to move forward with three primary conservation measures that were essential to the Service’s analysis of the project’s effects on the duskytail darter. The three conservation measures are: Capture and Hold – capturing duskytail darters and establishing a temporary, captive population of the species for future recovery efforts of the darter; Water Quality/Habitat Improvement – the Corps will remediate two acid mine drainages on tributaries of the Big South Fork and also complete one sediment abatement/soil stabilization project; and Interim Dam Adjustment – the Corps will modify operations at the Wolf Creek Dam to follow the Top Southeastern Power Administrative (SEPA) Curve during the Winter and Spring filling cycle with an overall goal of reaching elevation 723 around the middle of May. This interim operation will last for a minimum of three years, or longer, if the water quality improvements have not been completed.

The darters will be maintained and propagated at Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery in Russell County as part of the recovery effort and will, over time, be used in reintroduction or population augmentation efforts. Any reintroduction effort will require additional coordination with participating agencies.

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit www.fws.gov. Connect with our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/usfwssoutheast, follow our tweets at www.twitter.com/usfwssoutheast, watch our YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/usfws and download photos from our Flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwssoutheast.