All Boats

In South Carolina, vessels may not be operated in excess of idle speed within 50 feet of an anchored vessel, wharf, pier, dock, or a person in the water. Vessels may not operate in excess of idle speed within 100 yards of the Atlantic coastline (Sec. 50-21-870).

Equipment

Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs)
All boats must have a US Coast Guard approved wearable type PFD for each person on board or being towed. Each PFD must be in good condition, readily available and the proper size for the intended wearer. In addition, boats 16 feet in length or longer must carry a Type IV throwable device. In South Carolina, any person under twelve years of age must wear a US Coast Guard approved Type I, II, III, or V PFD when on board a class “A” (less than 16 ft. long) boat.

Fire Extinguisher
One Coast Guard approved hand-held portable fire extinguisher must be aboard each boat less than 26 ft. if the boat is carrying passengers for hire or if the construction permits the entrapment of flammable vapors or if it has a permanently installed gas tank, including gas tanks that use any type of fastener that would hamper the immediate removal of the tank from the boat. Additional extinguishers are required in boats larger than 26 ft. Contact the SCDNR for complete regulations.

Navigation Lights
Navigation Lights must be on between official sunset and sunrise.

Flares
Flares are required for vessels in coastal waters.

Bells, Whistle
All boats less than 39.4 feet must carry an efficient sound producing device. Every vessel from 39.4 to 65.6 feet must carry a whistle and a bell.

As the Independence Day weekend rapidly approaches, the temperatures are soaring and the lakes are full. Everyone is seeking ways to cool off, and many are dying to get back on the lake—but for some the dying part is literal.

There have been four recreation fatalities on the Corps of Engineers’ Savannah River lakes this fiscal year, and all of them were preventable.

Everyone should follow these three tips for a safe day at the lake. Failure to follow these is directly attributable to reoccurring causes of fatalities on our lakes.

• Wear a life jacket.  It is the easiest thing to do and yet more than 95 percent of the people who drowned on our lakes were not wearing one. Swimming, falling off a dock, or falling off a boat are all common actions that lead to drowning—but drowning could be prevented in most cases if the victim simply had worn a life jacket. Parents, set a good example for your kids and wear one.  Young people, encourage each other to wear one; it will not ruin your tan. Fishermen, I guarantee you can still cast as far and catch just as many fish wearing one than without. If you don’t have a life jacket, you can borrow one from our many life jacket loaner boards in our parks or ask a park ranger or attendant.
• Don’t swim out to buoys. There are multiple hazards under the water that you will never see –tree stumps, old bridges, drop-offs, and rocks. Don’t jump off bridges or swim out to the many buoys floating around the lake. First off, it is illegal and could get you fined, and second it is unsafe. We have many designated swim beaches around the lake for your use. Please use them. If you swim outside of these areas or decide to play off a dock, you have no idea what is under the water. You could step in a drop-off and find yourself inhaling water, or jump off a dock and hit an old pile of concrete dumped in the lake 20 years ago.
• Know how to operate your boat or personal water craft properly.  Did you know that lakes Hartwell and Thurmond consistently rank in the top 10 lakes nationwide with the most visitors? There are a lot of people on the lake every day during the peak recreation season. Knowing the ‘rules of the road’ with navigating and operating your water craft properly are essential to maintain a safe environment on the lake. Take a safe boating course (most are free) and operate your water craft responsibly.

Each day, especially weekends and holidays, a dedicated group of park rangers and volunteers canvass the lakes to remind people about water safety. They are not out there to harass you and probably would rather be enjoying the lake instead of wearing a hot uniform; but they feel that pushing water safety is a worthy cause, even if it saves just one life. If you are approached by one of these individuals, please listen to the message and take it to heart.

We want everyone to enjoy time at the lake.  Please use it responsibility. Consider the consequences of your actions and look out for each other.

~Joe Melton, Natural Resources Program Manager and Water Safety Coordinator

– See more at: http://balancingthebasin.armylive.dodlive.mil/2014/06/26/3things/#more-1598

While summer doesn’t officially start until June 21, to most of us in the Savannah River Basin, it feels like summer is already here. Temperatures are heating up, the ground is drying, and the trees are lush and green as they enter their peak season.

So what does that mean for reservoir levels? As the summer progresses, we will likely experience a dip in lake levels.

“Even with 100 percent of normal rainfall, the pools rise and fall at certain times of the year,” said Stan Simpson, a
hydrologist with the Savannah District. “This is evident in the pool plots when you look at the average elevation line.”

Simpson said normal inflow in the summer is typically insufficient to hold pools at a steady elevation, but the opposite occurs in the winter and spring—when conditions are typically cooler, the ground is more saturated, and evaporation rates are lower. During those periods, the reservoirs normally rise with normal rainfall.

“A point to keep in mind is that rainfall does not vary significantly throughout the year—therefore other environmental considerations such as temperature, evaporation, and transpiration play a larger role in pool elevations,” Simpson said.

In the Savannah River Basin, evaporation alone accounts for up to 1,200 cubic feet of water loss – every second. Transpiration is much more difficult to measure, but in the summer more water is lost from transpiration than evaporation. According to the U.S. Geological Survey website, a large oak tree can transpire 40,000 gallons per year. The most tangible way these two phenomena can be recognized is observation of lake-level trends in the summer. Despite significant amounts of above-average rain in the summer, this warmer season is almost always associated with falling lake levels.

Additionally, human needs vary throughout the year. The coldest months and the hottest months tend to increase demand for electricity, which results in greater hydropower generation through increased releases.

When operating in normal conditions, our protocols include being responsive to the hydropower needs of the Southeastern Power Administration, who is under contract with their customers. According to our water control manual, the reservoirs are in normal conditions during the summer when water levels are within the first four feet of conservation storage.

Check the latest weekly projections every Wednesday by visiting our water management website at http://water.sas.usace.army.mil  and click the “Declarations” button on the left menu.

As always, we welcome your questions and comments in the comments section below. Thanks for reading us!

~Tracy Robillard, public affairs specialist, corp of engineers