RIVERDALE, ND - One lane of U.S. Highway 83, crossing Lake Audubon in North Dakota will be closed beginning September 27 for approximately three weeks.
The lane closure will support a paving project as well as the annual fall drawdown of Lake Audubon.
The gates, which allow the Bureau of Reclamation to drawdown Lake Audubon, are accessed via the shoulder of the highway.
Crews will be repaving U.S. Highway 83 to match the pavement with the elevation of the temporary covers at the gatewell structure until permanent reparis to the gatewell covers are completed in spring 2017.
Boaters, cabin owners and recreation users should take proper precautions regarding changing lake levels to include removing watercraft and equipment before the water recedes.
By October 19, the water level for Lake Audubon will decline approximately 1.3 feet to 1845 mean sea level completing the fall drawdown. The elevation of Lake Audubon on September 27 was 1846.30 msl.
Annual fall drawdown operations are conducted on Lake Audubon for the following reasons:
- To provide for water freshening to improve water quality.
- To coincide with the southerly migration of waterfowl and shorebirds, providing exposed shoreline areas for feeding and loafing.
- To help reduce wave erosion of islands in the fall and ice damage during the winter and spring due to ice heave and breakup.
Release no. 20160927-001