Officials began water releases from the bottom of the lake behind Pipestem Dam last week as part of an effort to improve water quality of the lake, according to Bob Martin, dam manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Testing prior to the start of releases indicated no dissolved oxygen present in water near the bottom of the lake. Releases of 5 cubic feet per second from the bottom are mixing with up to 13 cfs from the top of the lake as the water flows through the outlet works, improving the quality of the water as it flows into Pipestem Creek, Martin said.
