AUSTIN – LCRA will lower Lake Austin beginning Jan. 2, at the request of the City of Austin, to help control nuisance plants in the lake and allow lakeside residents to build and maintain docks.

The drawdown of the lake is expected to take between two and three weeks for Lake Austin to fall about 12 feet. LCRA can only release the amount of water necessary to meet water demands and environmental needs downstream unless surplus water, sufficient to refill Lake Austin, can be stored in Lake Travis.  

Without significant rain in the forecast, a slow drawdown is expected. However, if significant rains add sufficient water to the flood pool of Lake Travis prior to the beginning of the drawdown, then this water could be used to refill Lake Austin without impacting water supply, therefore allowing a faster drawdown and more time at the lower level. LCRA officials will make this determination prior to the beginning of the drawdown. LCRA will begin refilling Lake Austin on Feb. 8 and complete the refill on Feb. 13.

LCRA has periodically lowered Lake Austin at the City of Austin’s request since the 1950s to help curb the growth of nuisance aquatic plants and to allow lakeside residents to perform construction and maintenance.

Lake drawdowns help control vegetation by exposing the plants to the air and killing off the leaves and stems by dehydration, providing temporary relief, particularly in the shallow areas where the plants are exposed. Since hydrilla, a fast-growing water weed, was first discovered in Lake Austin in 1999, lowering the lake has been one component of an ongoing comprehensive plan to fight the non-native plant.  Hydrilla has been less of a problem in recent years in Lake Austin; however, the presence of Eurasian watermilfoil, commonly known as duckweed, has increased.

Lakeside residents should maintain awareness of the lake level and weather forecasts when performing work and take care to remove equipment and tools from the shoreline when not in use. LCRA officials emphasize that Lake Austin could be refilled quickly with little or no notice in the event of a flood or if LCRA is required to provide hydroelectric generating capacity in an emergency.

Residents planning work on lakeside structures should contact the following City of Austin offices: For exemptions for repairing or rebuilding old boat docks, people should go to the Development Assistance Center, first floor, One Texas Center, 505 Barton Springs Road, 974-6370. For a new boat docks, the city requires a small project site plan, which can be submitted to the Intake section on the fourth floor of One Texas Center, 974-2689.