With a possible drought on the horizon, the big worry among many Lake County residents is the water level of Clear Lake. As of Monday the lake level was .85 feet on the Rumsey Gauge. Some experts are predicting that the lake level could be at zero by the middle of December. If that occurs the lake level will be at its lowest in more than a decade. Since 1873 the lake level has dropped to zero or lower only seven times. In 1924 it dropped to a minus 1.53 feet, 1932 a minus .1, 1939 a minus .36, in 1947 it registered zero on Rumsey Gauge, 1950 a minus .135, 1955 a minus .12 and in 1977 a minus 3.39 feet. The worst year was in 1977 when the county only received 12.46 inches of rainfall and the lake level only rose to a minus .3 feet. The lowest that year was a minus 3.39 feet. Just about all the boat ramps were left high and dry and people were walking under the Rodman Slough bridge. In recent times the worst year was in 1990 when the lake level dropped to a plus .32 feet on the Rumsey Gauge. The highest that year was only a plus 3.39 feet and the county only received 18.55 inches of rainfall. That was followed by another drought year in 1991 when the lake level receded to a plus .43 feet and peaked at only 3.98 feet. In December of 2009 the lake level bottomed out at .53 feet on the Rumsey Gauge. It will take at least five inches of rainfall over a short period of time before any runoff from the surrounding hills flows into the lake. To date the county has only received .33 inches of rain. Environmental Update is written by Terry Knight the Record-Bee outdoors writer.
