RATE AT WHICH LAKE EUFAULA IS SILTING IN
TO BE DISCUSSED AT NEXT
SAVE OUR WATER MEETING

FEBRUARY 20, 2007

MEDIA RELEASE: February 12, 2007 Contact: Karen Weldin

For Immediate Release 918-452-3184 or 918-605-7405 cell

kweldin@crosstel.net

(Eufaula) The rate at which Lake Eufaula is silting in will be discussed at the next Save Our Water meeting on Tuesday, February 20th at 7 p.m. at the Eufaula Community Center, 110 High Street, Eufaula. Mr. Greg Estep, Engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be the guest speaker. Mr. Estep will give a report of the Hydrographic Volumetric Survey that was completed on Lake Eufaula last year to determine how rapidly Lake Eufaula is filling in with sediment.

Lake Eufaula is 43 years old. Construction by the U.S. Corps of Engineers was completed in 1964. Lake Eufaula has six hundred miles of shoreline, a maximum depth of eighty-seven feet and a mean depth of about twenty-three feet. It was originally thought to be a hundred year lake. It is stocked with a variety of fish including crappie, bass, catfish and walleye and is one of Oklahoma’s favorite fishing lakes. It is also a favorite state area for water-skiing, camping, swimming, boating, hiking, hunting, and golfing. Eufaula and surrounding communities depend on Lake Eufaula for their livelihood and economic well-being through recreation and tourism dollars. The life of Lake Eufaula is extremely important to people of Southeast Oklahoma.

“Silt carried by water flowing into the lake is a natural process,” said Karen Weldin, SOW President. “We believe it is important for people to know at what rate the flow of sedimentation is being deposited and what to expect in the future. This is important to the prudent management of the lake. We want to make sure Lake Eufaula will be here for generations to come!”

A hydrographic survey of Lake Eufaula was performed in 2006 by the Texas Water Development Board, utilizing depth sounding equipment and global positioning satellite equipment. The results were compared with data compiled from a study done in the 1970’s.

“By watching and keeping an eye on what is happening to the sedimentation rate, we can be good advocates of our mission to protect and preserve Lake Eufaula and do what we can to work with the Corps of Engineers and others to slow this process down,” said George Ellison 2nd Vice President of SOW.

At this meeting, we will learn what the sediment rate in Lake Eufaula is, the areas of most and least concern and what has been done and can be done to slow down the process.

All interested persons are encouraged to attend the meeting.

Save Our Water, Inc. is a group of community leaders, business owners, lake area and Oklahoma residents and concerned citizens who have come together to work to preserve and protect Lake Eufaula and all Oklahoma’s water resources.

For more information, go to www.saveourwaterlakeeufaula.com or call 918-452-3184.