Savage River Tailwater Update

Type: Nontidal
Region: Western
Location: Savage River Tailwater

Anglers please be aware of recent changes in condition of the Savage River Tailwater. Repairs to the dam have been completed and the normal operating procedure of regulating the flow from valves within the Savage Reservoir Dam is resuming. Prior to 4/14/10, the river flow was clear surface water coming over the reservoir spillway. Water is now being withdrawn from a lower reservoir level and there has been a decrease in the clarity of the water.

Rapid run-off from the upper watershed served to clear the tailwater of large amounts of silt that had been deposited during the reservoir drawdown process. However, this run-off event also brought a large amount of fine silt that has suspended near the reservoir bottom. There will be no attempts to flush this discolored water because it is important to conserve the coldwater layer to support trout throughout the summer months.

River clarity will improve in time as the silt settles out or is drawn off. The river is still certainly fishable with visibility about two feet of depth. Trout did survive the severe conditions during the drawdown and will be able to survive the current conditions. Fisheries Service will be taking weekly water samples in the river to track the water quality in the river and will conduct surveys in the near future to estimate impacts trout population.