Shrinking Lake Lenape raises concerns in Hamilton Township

From the Press of Atlantic City.....

HAMILTON TOWNSHIP - A little more than a year ago, officials were furiously pumping water out of a Lake Lenape that was rising quickly because of heavy rains that swelled its tributaries during a strong northeaster.
Now, Atlantic County and local officials are trying to stop as much water as possible from flowing out of the lake, whose level has dropped substantially during the past several weeks.
Too little rain, a stuck sluice gate at Lake Lenape Dam and a series of closed sluice gates on lakes at Collings Lakes in Buena Vista Township are being blamed for the recent drop in water level, according to local and county officials.
"We're very concerned about this," said Township Administrator Edward Sasdelli, one several local and county officials who met at the lake Thursday.
While National Weather Service statistics show more rain has fallen this year compared with the same period in 2007, Sasdelli said the problem is that little rain has fallen in the past few weeks.

That's decreased the amount of water flowing into the lake from the Great Egg Harbor River, the lake's biggest water source, he said. Operators of dams at Collings Lakes have closed their sluice gates to maintain water levels there, shutting off another water source to Lake Lenape, he said.
Additionally, one of the Lake Lenape dam's three sluice gates is stuck open by about 8 inches, allowing water to drain out of the lake, Sasdelli said. The county may install a metal plate to cover the sluice gate to shut it completely, he said.
The county is also working with an engineering firm to develop a plan for the installation of a coffer dam to improve the operation of the dam's sluice gates. The proposed plan requires permit approvals from the state Department of Environmental Protection, DEP.
"We have been diligently working to optimize the operation of the gates for over a year," said Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson. "We are now waiting for the appropriate DEP approvals to proceed."
Meanwhile, county officials are recommending that Lake Lenape boaters reduce the speed of their crafts to 5 mph, down from the normal speed of 45 mph. They're also telling boaters to be careful of underwater hazards that are now exposed or closer to the lake's surface.
"We understand the concerns of nearby homeowners and local boaters and we are doing our best to ensure their safety under these temporary circumstances," said Levinson.
Following an April 2007 northeaster, Lake Lenape experienced excessively high water levels which required emergency pumping to help draw down the levels to avoid street flooding. The rains stopped in time to prevent excessive flooding around the lake.
Now, forecasts call for a chance of showers and thunderstorms over the next several days - a weather forecast county officials say they'll welcome for the sake of Lake Lenape water level.
"Beach-goers and vacationers may not like it, but we'd welcome some help from Mother Nature," Levinson said.