RKLD Surreply - Give Us Back Our Water...

DNR mischaracterizes the Petitioners’ property based arguments as seeking the manipulation of water levels" for the "personal gain of land owners." Reply Brief at page 6.)

The Petitioners ask nothing more than a water level order that recognizes the significant changes in circumstances since the Department’s 1982-1991 orders were issued and gives due consideration to the protected interests under s. 31.02(1).

LKWA’s Reply Brief highlights another critical point: The reinstatement of the 1991 water levels in the 2005 order does not maintain the status quo.

It lowers the lake levels experienced in recent decades.

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1 DNR has acknowledged that the lake level at the Newville gage is some 3.5 inches above the dam. Thus when enforcement of the water level order was transferred to the Newville gage, it had effect of reducing the maximum water level by that amount.