Ask Mr. Answer Person: "Why is Lake Meyer's lake level two feet lower than normal?"

Lake Meyer

(Ryan e-mails Mr. Answer Person: "Why is Lake Meyer about 2 feet low and seems to still be getting lower?  Even in the drought in 2010 it wasn't as low as it is now.  Are they draining it or is something leaking and letting water out?")

Mr. Answer Person says: "You're half right.  The level of the lake was lowered by two feet because Winneshiek County Conservation discovered a leak near the Lake Meyer dam.  Once the lake level was lowered two feet, the leak stopped, says Winneshiek County Conservation Executive Director Barb Schroeder.  The leak was in a stone bank near the dam, not in the dam itself. 

The lake is NOT leaking now and the water level is staying where it's at.  That's in part due to the fact that the Conservation Board knows the fish population in the lake is important, so it doesn't want to do anything to further stress the fish.  The Conservation Board will fix the leak next spring and return the lake level to normal.