The International Kootenay Lake Board of Control has expanded its membership and will be reviewing its mandate with the future in mind.
The board was established by a 1938 Order of Approval from the International Joint Commission (IJC) and operates under a 2016 Directive.
The board monitors operations of the Corra Linn Dam, owned and operated by Fortis BC. The dam is at the outlet of Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, which receives water from tributaries flowing through Idaho, Montana and British Columbia. The Order sets rules for managing water levels in Kootenay Lake throughout the year.
The four-person board is now an eight-person board, with the recent addition of Canadian members Isaac Dekker, watershed stewardship coordinator for Yaqan Nukiy (Lower Kootenay Band); and Greg Utzig, a public member from Nelson, British Columbia.
They join new United States members Roger Morter, a public member from Bonners Ferry, Idaho; and Nate Jensen, fishery and wildlife director for the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho.
The addition of Indigenous members with strong ecological backgrounds and public members with backgrounds in the Idaho agriculture industry and riparian interests around Kootenay Lake makes the board well-positioned to begin a review of its 1938 Order.
The board is in the midst of developing a Plan of Study to define the timeline, budget and scope of the Order review, with plans to complete the process in a year, by March 2026.
The current Order is in need of review to determine its effectiveness after decades of hydrological and physical changes within the basin.
For instance, future warmer and wetter conditions in the basin are among early conclusions from a Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment conducted by the board. A 2022 information paper authored by the board also notes that many significant changes have occurred since the 1938 Order established a framework for managing Kootenay Lake, including the construction and operation of two large upstream dams that altered the hydrology and water quality, and many actions in the Kootenay River Basin for flood risk management, improving the ecosystem and other considerations.
A key component of the Plan of Study is engaging with people who live and work in the basin, which was one driver in expanding the board’s membership. Feedback gathered in meetings and workshops this year will help gather input to inform the work.
The existing 1938 Order includes target water levels that vary by season throughout the year.
Before the spring runoff, the lake level must be gradually lowered so that it does not go above 530.14 meters (1739.32 feet) on or about April 1, based on measurements at Queens Bay.
During high water in the summer, the maximum lake level is determined by how much water naturally flows out of the lake (before the dredging of an outlet at Grohman Narrows).
After summer, when the water level drops below 531.36 meters (1743.32 feet) at Nelson, it must stay below that level until August 31. This helps farmers work on the floodplain.
From September 1 to January 7, the lake level must not go higher than 531.97 meters (1745.32 feet).
More information on the International Kootenay Lake Board of Control is online at ijc.org/en/klbc.
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