SOUTH DUNDAS, Ontario – Area boaters will have more difficulty removing their boats from the water this fall.
The International Lake Ontario St. Lawrence River Board, which regulates water levels on the St. Lawrence River, approved a small increase to water levels to help boaters.
Over part of the Thanksgiving weekend, water flowing through the Moses Saunders Dam in Cornwall will be reduced by 250 cubic metres per second. This temporary cut will increase water levels on Lake St. Lawrence by 10 centimetres, or about four inches. In 2020, the ILOSLR board approved a cut allowing water levels to increase between 30 and 40 cm.
Lower-than-forecast spring runoff and a dry summer prompted water level warnings throughout the region. That combined with extreme heat warnings that evaporated water off the lower Great Lakes affected water levels on the river and Lake St. Lawrence.
With any cut in water flow through the power dam, weather will be a factor. Excessive wind during that time could cancel any effects of the increased water levels. The increased level of water in the lake will be seen more towards Long Sault in the east, and less so towards Iroquois.
The ILOSLR is set to begin its water flow reductions at noon on October 8. The boat haul out period will remain in effect until October 11.
As with recent years, this will be the only water level increase for the season.
This article was originally written for, and appeared in The Morrisburg Leader.
