Have Your Voice Heard about Re-Licensing

​Last issue we published the stance of the Lake Wedowee Property Owners Association concerning the Federal Relicensing proposal submitted by Alabama Power Company.

If you are interested in having your voice heard concerning the relicensing of RL Harris Dam by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, you have until late September to do so.

If you own property on Lake Wedowee or use it for recreation, you are considered a stakeholder and if you want to see changes, now is the time to act.

Education is key and the relicensing process is not simple. There is a website available www. harrisrelicensing.com that explains it. Trust us when we say it’s a lot of information and can be confusing.

One request we have heard through the years is raising the winter level from 785. That alternative was considered but eliminated from the proposal due to the increase in downstream flooding.

Another request has been more public use access for recreation specifically swimming. Currently we have Flat Rock Park that is open to the public for swimming and then we have a nature trail at the Preserve at Fox Creek that is public use as well (not open for swimming).

In the proposal, Alabama Power proposes to develop a recreation plan that would include the installation and maintenance of recreation access for canoe/kayak below the dam. The recreation plan would also include an additional recreation site on Lake Wedowee that would be a day use park (swimming, picnicking and boat ramp).

There are currently 11 existing recreation sites on Lake Wedowee which includes Flat Rock Park and all existing public boat ramps.

To be included in the public comment portion of this project, it is as simple as going online to ferconline.ferc. gov registering with an email and your address and phone number. Once your email address is approved, you can go to eComment the hydro project docket number is P-2628-065.

Be concise, you have 6,000 characters to offer your opinion. Some have been recorded asking for things like more recreation spots, an extended summer lake level, more public access.

​We did a little research on when Lake Martin went through the relicensing process and your voice really does matter. 
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If you know of something that Wedowee Insiders should know, drop us a line at [email protected].