Inks Lake drawdown underway
The docks and piers in Inks Lake State Park no longer reach the water with an LCRA drawdown underway. Inks Lake will be down 8 feet until late November to give shoreside property owners a chance to do maintenance and cleanup work. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
Inks Lake has dropped several feet since the Lower Colorado River Authority began its drawdown Oct. 1. By Thursday, Oct. 9, the lake will be down 8 feet until it is refilled in late November.
On Sept. 9, the LCRA announced it would lower Inks Lake so shoreside property owners could perform maintenance on their docks, retaining walls, and other infrastructure as well as dredge and remove debris. Burning debris in the lakebed is not allowed.
The lake will be lowered a foot a day through Thursday and be refilled Nov. 24-28.
Inks Lake State Park will not rent watercraft during the drawdown as its ramps, docks, and piers will be unusable.
The LCRA has not lowered Inks Lake since 2020. The authority does not have plans to draw down any of the other Highland Lakes in the near future, but a decision could be made next fall.
Property owners must register with the LCRA before conducting debris removal, dredging, or shoreline improvements to retaining walls, boat slips, and boat launches.
Registration is not required for dock repairs, but the work must comply with official safety standards for residential docks on the Highland Lakes.
Learn more about LCRA requirements for retaining walls, boat ramps, and channels in the Highland Lakes Dredge and Fill Ordinance.
Inks Lake is being lowered over eight days, rather than all at once, to give the aquatic ecosystem time to adjust to the changing water level and reduce the risk of erosion.
The target drawdown level is 879 to 879.5 feet above mean sea level. About 5,000 acre-feet of water will be released from Inks, which will be refilled by water from Lake Buchanan in November. This will have a minimal impact on Buchanan’s overall level, amounting to around a 3-inch drop without any future rainfall.
Learn more about the Inks Lake drawdown on the LCRA website or contact LCRA Water Quality Protection at 512-578-2324 or hldo@lcra.org.