July 5, 2007

1. Who cleans up all the debris on the lakes? What about the debris collecting in my cove?
2. Why is Lake Travis still rising? When is the level of Lake Travis going to go down?
3. Why can’t we go out on the lake in our boat right now? It’s a holiday week and we were looking forward to having a good time on the water.
4. When was the last time Lake Travis was this high? How many times has the lake level been at 700 feet mean sea level or above?

1. Who cleans up all the debris on the lakes? What about the debris collecting in my cove? It is too early to shift efforts to lake cleanup because the flood event is still in progress and will be for some time. Nature will take care of some of the debris because it will sink to the lake bottom within a few days. Other debris will be washed onto the shoreline and can be removed there. Meanwhile, LCRA will mark, and in some cases remove, large boating hazards in the main navigation channels. LCRA cleans up its park facilities following floods but is not responsible for cleaning up flood debris on private property. So lakeside residents will need to make their own plans to clean up their property following the flood event. A number of private contractors provide that type of service, but LCRA does not.

2.Why is Lake Travis still rising? When is the level of Lake Travis going to go down?

Lake Travis continues to rise because quite simply water continues to run off from the lake's massive watershed and into the watersheds of the other Highland Lakes that drain into Travis. It's important to understand that the watersheds that drain into Lake Travis cover nearly 15,000 square miles — which is roughly the same size as the states of New Jersey and Massachusetts combined. In some parts of the drainage basin, runoff can take several days to reach Lake Travis. So while the sun may be shining in Austin, Lake Travis continues to rise due to rain that fell days ago in the outer reaches of the basin. While LCRA officials forecast that Lake Travis will reach 702 or 703 feet above mean sea level, this level is based on rain that has already fallen. Simply put: The level Lake Travis reaches depends on whether there is more rain, where that rain falls and when it falls.

3. Why can’t we go out on the lake in our boat right now? It’s a holiday week and we were looking forward to having a good time on the water.
No time is a good time for a flood that affects people’s lives and property. However, unsafe conditions on the Highland Lakes make boating hazardous at this point. LCRA has closed all its lakes, except Lake Buchanan, where caution is advised because of debris, floodgate operations and other factors. Right now on the other five Highland Lakes, swift currents, debris and high bacteria levels make recreation unsafe.

4. When was the last time Lake Travis was this high? How many times has the lake level been at 700 feet mean sea level (msl) or above? Lake Travis has been this high five times since Mansfield Dam was completed in 1941. Here are the top five highest elevations for Lake Travis:

*Flood event ongoing; Lake Travis continues to rise slowly as of July 5 at 2:45 p.m.