FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch 29, 2021

SHAFER AND FREEMAN LAKES ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION CORPORATION (SFLECC) has received a grant from the NiSource Charitable Foundation, the charitable foundation supported by NIPSCO’s parent company NiSource Inc., to restock Lakes Freeman and Shafer.

Due to environmental concerns created by lowered lake levels in Lake Freeman, the SFLECC pursued options to sustain the fish populations that may have been deprived of important spawning areas.

SFLECC applied for a $40,000 grant through NIPSCO (NiSource Charitable Foundation) that will allow the restocking of fish in both Lake Freeman and Lake Shafer. “We received the wonderful news that we had been awarded $40,000, which will allow us to accomplish our goal. We are truly grateful that NIPSCO has made it possible,” stated Gabrielle Haygood, SFLECC Executive Director.

SFLECC is dedicated to supporting the lakes’ biodiversity through fish stocking and creating habitat in our lakes. We are currently working with a DNR fisheries biologist to establish where and what types of fish are best for our lakes, and will be stocking the lakes sometime this fall. The biologist can help determine the types of fish needed for a more environmentally balanced body of water that can self-maintain weed and insect problems.

Karen McLean, NIPSCO Public Affairs and Economic Development Manager shares “NIPSCO is committed to being good neighbors with the White and Carroll County communities and SFLECC. We are excited to provide funding to reestablish the natural fish habitats in the lakes that provide such an economic impact.”

This grant will support the lakes for sport fishing, as well as provide better fishing for local homeowners and community. The Twin Lakes bring in fishing tournaments and are a vital contribution to local tourism and economy.

As of 6 a.m. ET, March 1, 2021, the surface elevation taken near the face of the Oakdale Hydroelectric Dam has returned to the normal Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) operating range between 610.10 and 611.10 ft.

Currently, Lake Freeman is down just under 2.5 ft. As the water levels continue to rise, as well as the lake freezing and thawing, please make sure your boats and PWCs are secure. It would also be helpful to notify your neighbors who may not be around in the winter of this so they can plan accordingly. Thank you and Think Spring!

After a few weeks of some precipitation, it looks as though the water levels are heading in the right direction in 2021! A big thanks to Susan’s Freeman Bay for providing a visual. We are still awaiting a decision from our October 5th court hearing and the minute we know anything, we will pass it along. Happy New Year!

https://waterdata.usgs.gov/in/nwis/uv?site_no=03332605

NIPSCO continues to maintain close coordination with local officials to closely monitor the drought conditions and extended lack of rain and water flow along the Tippecanoe River, which has resulted in low lake levels at Lake Freeman where the Oakdale Hydroelectric Dam is situated.
An Abnormal River Condition (ARC) Warning was issued in early August, requiring NIPSCO to adjust operations to maintain a defined level of flow through its Oakdale Dam along Lake Freeman to comply with the Endangered Species Act, which is federally mandated and enforced by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS).
Without a significant rainfall or water upstream, the use of Lake Shafer – where NIPSCO’s Norway Hydroelectric Dam is situated – may be required to maintain compliance, which could potentially affect lake levels at Lake Shafer. The timing and degree of any potential drawdown of Lake Shafer is dependent on weather, but current projections indicate such activity could occur as early as this year.
During normal operations, NIPSCO is required to operate both dams as “Run-of-Rivers”, under its license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). This requires NIPSCO, to the maximum extent practicable, to match the outflow from the Norway Dam to the sum of the inflows to Lake Shafer, and the outflow of the Oakdale Dam has to match the sum of the inflows to Lake Freeman.
During times of drought when there is a lack of rainfall for an extended period of time – as experienced this summer – there is less water moving down the river. FERC refers to those instances as “Abnormal River Conditions,” and due to the presence of endangered mussels, provides specific guidance on how much water must be discharged from Oakdale Dam. When Abnormal River Conditions persist – which it has done – it causes Lake Freeman levels to drop.
If there is not enough water in Lake Freeman to maintain the required flows through the Oakdale Dam, NIPSCO may need to utilize the Norway Dam to draw on Lake Shafer in order to meet the federal requirements.  NIPSCO is requesting a temporary variance from FERC in the event that drought conditions persist and Lake Shafer water is needed to comply with the federal requirements.
The specific manner in which NIPSCO will manage both lakes in these conditions, including how the drawdown and reloading occurs, is dependent on safe operation of the dams and how weather conditions evolve.
 For an ARC event to be lifted, the 24-hour average must rise above 410 cfs at the Buffalo USGS gauge and the 24-hour average must rise above 300 cfs at the Winamac USGS gauge. Current information may be found at www.nipsco.com/hydro.

LAKE SHAFER ADDITIONAL FAQs

Can’t NIPSCO just continue using Lake Freeman to comply with the Endangered Species Act?
No, without additional water or rainfall, there is not sufficient water in Lake Freeman to maintain the required flows through the Oakdale Hydroelectric Dam.

When water levels begin to return/increase, how will the refilling process occur?
As water levels begin to return, NIPSCO will attempt to fill both lakes as close to the same time as reasonably possible to balance the stability of the Norway Dam on both sides.

How long will NIPSCO utilize Lake Shafer to maintain the required flows through the Oakdale Dam?
NIPSCO has requested a temporary variance to allow for the use of Lake Shafer until the elevation at Lake Freeman has returned to normal operating levels (610.35 ft). The temporary variance will expire after that point. NIPSCO is not able to predict how long the current drought conditions will continue, as it is dependent on weather and additional water.

As many of you have been following our Low Lake Level situation, here we are, yet another week going by without enough rain.  We first want to start out by letting you know we had our hearing on Monday in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.  For those who listened in, we felt, at first, we were off to a rocky start.  As time went on, we started feeling much better as our attorney was able to get in some very good and important points.  We then listened to the FERC attorney and then the FWS attorney from the Department of Justice, and there was just as much critical questioning to those attorneys.  We realized the judges definitely did their homework and read the materials given to them ahead of time, and were prepared to ask tough questions to all of the parties.  All in all, we felt there wasn’t one party that succeeded over the other, and are thankful that the outcome is being determined by three impartial judges.  We hope to hear a decision within the next 30-60 days, but as you know it is federal court and could take several months.  After all, the SFLECC has been battling this for the last six years.

Several have listened to us as we’ve gotten the word out to contact the Federal Senators and U.S. Representatives.  Thank you for continuing to do this as it is imperative to gain their attention.  You ask, “Is this doing any good?”  Yes, it certainly is! Over the last month, we have had meetings with U.S. Representative Jim Baird who is very passionate regarding this matter.  Representative Baird has been to Lake Freeman and has seen firsthand what we are dealing with.  We have also had meetings with and calls from Senator Braun’s and Senator Young’s offices.  As some of you may have seen a couple weeks ago, Senator Braun had the opportunity to bring up the Lake Freeman situation while attending an EPW Hearing on the Endangered Species Act.  On a local level, Senator Brian Buchanan, along with Senator Alting and Rep. Don Lehe, have been here evaluating the situation and are continually getting in touch with people at the state level.  Senator Buchanan and Senator Alting have been involved in several conference calls that we have had and have even initiated some of those calls.  So as you can see, your calls and letters are getting the attention we need. 

Lastly, we want you to know that just because our court date has happened, we are still constantly trying to come up with other solutions.  We have a phenomenal task force, and the SFLECC Board of Directors and staff are very passionate about this issue as we plough forward.  We will continue to do whatever we can to help save the lake levels!

Gabrielle Haygood, SFLECC Executive Director   

John Koppelmann, SFLECC Lake Levels Task Force Chairperson

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) propose to amend portions of their regulations that implement section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The proposed revisions set forth a process for excluding areas of critical habitat under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, which mandates their consideration of the impacts of designating critical habitat and permits exclusions of particular areas following a discretionary exclusion analysis. They want to articulate clearly when and how FWS will undertake an exclusion analysis, including identifying a non-exhaustive list of categories of potential impacts for FWS to consider. The proposed rulemaking would respond to applicable Supreme Court case law, reflect agency experience, codify some current agency practices, and make some modifications to current agency practice. The intended effect of this proposed rule is to provide greater transparency and certainty for the public and stakeholders.

Time is of the essence! We urge everyone to submit a comment today! https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=FWS-HQ-ES-2019-0115-0001

Here’s a submitted comment from a Lake resident that may help shape yours: “As it pertains to the Tippecanoe River above Lake Shafer & below Lake Freeman, please acknowledge the lakes have been always run as run-of-the-river lakes, where the measured input of upstream water matches the output at the other end. Currently, the calculations are incorrect and Oakdale dam is being mandated to release more water than enters the dam system, causing the draining of Lake Freeman in historic amounts. When there is a drought, the rivers all slow and recede naturally. Artificially supplementing the water released to the lower Tippecanoe River will also eventually run out, but at a huge environmental impact to the natural habitats of the lakes. The thousands of dead mussels, turtles, crawdads in Lake Freeman is devastating. In addition to the environmental impacts to the Lake Freeman habitats, the sea walls around the lake have already started collapsing due to the lack of positive pressure that has always been present between the water & land. Homeowners were left unable to plan for removal & protection of their property in preparation for this extended draw down. This will ultimately cause property damage to frozen boats, damaged covers due to snow load. Boats are unable to be winterized due to lack of manpower and capacity at the local marinas. This is all due to a federal mandate based on flawed science. There has to be a better balance!”

~10/5/2020~

Here is the audio link to today’s oral arguments in Washington D.C.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgprW9lbS6A

There are 3 cases and it looks like we may be 3rd on the docket. If you don’t want to hang on the phone waiting for our argument to start, there will be a recording posted on the Court’s website this afternoon, usually by 3 pm.

~UPDATE 10/6/2020~

A note from SFLECC Lake Levels Task Force Chairperson:

Many of you are aware that our court hearing in the US Court of Appeals – DC Circuit was yesterday, and I am sure many of you listened in. I will start with my take on the hearing and then I will summarize the follow up phone call I had with our attorney.

All in all, I felt the judges had read the materials beforehand and were prepared to ask ALL the sides thought-out questioning. Even when it comes to polar bears! (If you listened to the hearing, you’ll get this reference.) I will be honest, I do not feel that we have a leg up on the other parties, but I do not feel that either of them have a leg up on us. I feel the decision is up in the air, but I am happy that we have impartial judges making a decision instead of what we’ve been dealing with to this point with FWS using the ESA to hide behind, and FERC taking the complacent and easy route of agreeing with the FWS.

In speaking with our attorney yesterday afternoon, he feels our evidence is solid especially with some of the lines of questioning the judges had for the other 2 attorneys. He said he doesn’t want to get our hopes up because it is completely up to the judges. I asked if there was a set time that the judges had to make a decision and he said no. He anticipates 30-60 days before we hear a decision. He said he has heard of some judges rendering a decision after 2 weeks, but also others taking 11 months. I also asked if he is able to submit any kind of summary or final remarks and he said not unless the judges instructed him to do so, and they did not in this case.

So now we are back to waiting on a decision and not knowing when we will hear that decision. This is all too familiar of a situation over the last 6 years. Keep your fingers crossed that we hear the decision we want to hear and please continue to pray for rain, as that is our only means of immediate relief. 

Thank you for your continued help and support of this issue.

1. BE CAREFUL! The water levels have dropped significantly, creating many hazards.

2. Contact Federal Representatives!

https://www.young.senate.gov/help/help-with-a-federal-agency https://www.braun.senate.gov/contact-mikehttps://baird.house.gov/services/casework/help-with-a-federal-agency.htm

*Reference FERC case number P-12514.

*Let them know the Endangered Species Act in which US Fish & Wildlife is enforcing is resulting in…in your own words describe how it is affecting your Lake Freeman experience.

*Explain your damages if you have any to your property and property value concern.

3. We have been asked many times if Lake Shafer will be lowered soon and the short answer is no. Here is NIPSCO’s official statement, “NIPSCO’s first responsibility is the safety of the local population as well as their employees. NIPSCO is also responsible for the security and safety of the dam structures themselves and we are required to follow our FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) operating license. Lake Shafer has an upper and a lower operating level range NIPSCO has to maintain to stay in compliance with their FERC operating license. NIPSCO’s Hydro Dams operating license does not allow, nor require, NIPSCO to draw down Lake Shafer below the minimum operating level to help meet the requirements of the USFWS (US Fish and Wildlife Service) Technical Assistance Letter.”

4. Support SFLECC’s appeal in Federal Court to overturn FERC’s decision to uphold US Fish & Wildlife’s mandate to drain Lake Freeman!

5. What about mussels in Lake Freeman? US Fish & Wildlife has determined there aren’t mussels in Lake Freeman that are on the endangered species list. 

6. What is the SFLECC doing? We have spent over a half million dollars fighting this battle against the US Fish & Wildlife and are now in the Federal Court process.  If you would like to contribute, we need your help!  https://checkout.square.site/pay/edcd3dc7f1d74c069f7ab44c51f1bdcc

This past Saturday, the SFLECC held its Annual Meeting at the Monticello City Park to share what’s been happening over the last year and to vote in new board members.

Awards were also given to our dredge operators, Jim Shipp and Corey Keigher, for being vital parts of this organization for the past 20 years!

Eight board candidates were on the ballot for 5 available board positions. After the votes were counted, Pat Carroll, Dave Hardy, Ed Lucy, Rick Sweet, and Joel Stiller were elected to the SFLECC Board of Directors.