Dam & Lake Level Basics
Lakes and dams provide benefits that are balanced among the individual needs of several communities, including:

- Municipal water supplies
- Industrial and power plant water uses
- Daily release requirements and drought mitigation
- Wildlife habitat and aquatic environments
- Recreation (fishing, boating, skiing, docks, etc.)
Each lake directly affects the other lakes in its system. To manage the level of one lake, Duke Energy must examine the levels and requirements at each of the other lakes in the system and respond accordingly.
Reservoir Level Variability: Lake levels can vary depending on the location on the reservoir. The lake levels reported on this website are measured at our hydro station dams. During high inflow events, water levels (elevations) could be substantially above (e.g., 5 feet or more) the levels recorded at the dam.

We move water downstream using the following methods: