The annual fall drawdown of Kinderhook Lake will be delayed while we make emergency repairs to the sluice gate at Nivers Dam.

The sluice gate is one of our primary tools for controlling the lake level. It also lets us lower the lake below the spillway crest, which is how the fall drawdown is done. The gate has developed operational problems that make it unreliable, and we need to repair it before the drawdown can safely proceed.

Here is what the work involves:

• Emergency DEC permit. Because this work affects the dam and the lake level, we received an emergency permit from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).
• Temporary dam. The area around the sluice gate must be dewatered behind a temporary dam to allow crews to reach and repair it.
• Water over the primary spillway. DEC requires continued flow in the Valatiekill downstream. To meet that requirement without the costly alternative of pumping water over the dam, we need to keep the lake high enough that water continues to flow over the primary spillway while repairs are underway. The lake will therefore stay near its current level until the work is done.

Work is expected to begin this week. Thank you for your patience.