IJC: Outflows to continue at current level; water anticipated to drop a foot by mid-August

The International Joint Commission says it will maintain Lake Ontario outflows at their current level until water levels drop by about one foot.

The board previously announced the outflows would be set at 10,400 cubic meters per second – which is above the limits set in Plan 2014. At the most recent board meeting, its members said the outflow rate would be maintained until the lake level dropped below 247.7 feet.

The IJC is anticipating the water levels will reach this point sometime in mid-August, depending on weather on other factors.

“The board is acutely aware of and concerned for the welfare of the many shoreline property owners who continue to see impacts from the high water level and continues to consider all regulation strategies that would provide the most possible relief to those impacted,” the board said in a statement Thursday. “However, the limitations of the Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River system prevent another regulation strategy that would provide more immediate possible relief without significantly impacting other interests.”