HARRISBURG, Pa. (Sept. 1) – The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced today that it will host a public meeting in Donegal, Westmoreland County, on Sept. 22 to provide an update on reconstruction of the Donegal Lake dam.
The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Donegal Community Center, located at 113 Community Center Lane, Donegal, PA 15628.
The meeting is free and open to the public.
Last month, Governor Tom Wolf announced that he was releasing $25.7 million in capital budget funding for the repair of five high-hazard, unsafe dams, including Donegal Lake, and the design of two other dams. High-hazard, unsafe dams have deficiencies of such a nature that if not corrected and the dams were to fail, substantial property damage and a probable loss of human life could occur.
During the public meeting, PFBC engineering and fisheries staff will discuss the timeline and details for draining the lake, conducting a fish salvage and rebuilding the dam.
The 90-acre lake is expected to be fully drained during September and early October. A fish salvage will then be conducted to move as many fish as possible to another water.
In advance of the fish salvage, the PFBC has temporarily lifted all seasons, sizes and creel limits at the lake. The lake is primarily a stocked trout lake, but also holds largemouth bass, white and black crappie, and bluegill.
“We have temporarily lifted the regulations in order to reduce the number of fish in the lake in advance of a complete drawdown of the lake and a fish salvage,” said Jason Detar, Chief of the PFBC Division of Fisheries Management. “We want anglers to fish the water and make good use of as many fish as they can.”
The estimated $5 million construction project is expected to start in late spring or early summer 2017 and last through 2018. The lake is expected to be refilled and open for public use again in spring 2019. Stocked trout angling should also return to Donegal Lake in 2019.
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Media Contact:Eric Levis, Press Secretary
717.705.7806 or elevis@pa.gov