By Elizabeth Matthews
Jennings, MO (KSDK) - Our heat wave and drought are drastically affecting river and lake levels. In Jennings, the water level of its stocked fishing lake is getting dangerously low, threatening the fish.
It's a man-made lake and about seven years old. The City of Jennings stocks it with fish for public fishing, but now the fish may not have enough oxygen to survive because the level is so low.
Volunteers with the Missouri Department of Conservation were asked this afternoon to check this lake's level. This is something the stream team volunteers do four times a year and in special situations.
Jennings public works says if the level which is normally at ten feet deep is below eight, then more water will need to be pumped into the lake to protect the fish and their habitat.
Tuesday, volunteers found the level in the deepest part of the lake is actually only 6'4" deep.
"We will have to pump water from the nearby stream which is Maline creek which we monitor for the Missouri stream team program, and they have to pump water from a stream that's running low to fill a lake that's running low," said volunteer David Kuechenmeister.
He and his team say that all bodies of water in and around Missouri are way down this year and lakes like the Jennings one are the lowest they've ever seen them.
KSDK