Frequently Asked Questions:                                                             Last Updated: August 1, 2006

1.         

2.         I have heard that the lake is going to be drained. Is that true?

Answer: No, that is a rumor which has taken on a life of its own. There are no plans at all to drain the lake. There are also no plans to lower the lake levels below the usual levels.

3.         I have heard that work will be done to the dam. What will be involved in making modifications to the dam?

Answer: There are two aspects of the dam which are being studied.

First, there is an emergency spillway (the technical name is the “fuse plug”) whose purpose is to let water out of the lake quickly if needed. The existing fuse plug was designed to be blown up with an explosive. The federal government has determined that our existing fuse plug is not adequate. Once the fuse plug is blown, there is nothing to stop the water, so the lake will empty. Greenwood County is studying alternatives which will allow high volumes of water to be released quickly but which can be stopped once the danger is gone.

Second, when the lake was built, the bed of the Saluda River bed was blocked with clay (the technical name is the “earthen dam”). The water started backing up and began to run around to the concrete dam where it runs through the turbines to produce electricity. The federal government is requiring Greenwood County to perform studies to see if the earthen dam can withstand an earthquake. If the earthen dam fails, the lake will empty and property below the dam will be flooded. One solution is to put more dirt on the part of the earthen dam which is outside of the lake.

4.         I have heard that encroachments must have a permit. What is an encroachment?

Answer: An encroachment is anything which extends from lake front property into the lake bed. Examples are piers, docks, boat ramps, retaining walls and similar items.

5.         My pier has been in place for many years. Is my pier grandfathered.?

Answer: No. All encroachments into Lake Greenwood require the permission of Greenwood County. A permit is the document which gives you written permission. In most cases, Greenwood County will be able to give you a permit for your pier to remain. In a few cases, existing piers might have to be modified. Only in very rare cases will an existing pier have to be taken out.

6.         I have heard that my property does not go all the way down to the water. Why not?

Answer: Think of Lake Greenwood as a bathtub. Greenwood County owns the bathtub. Just like a bathtub, the lake is usually not full. However, the normal high water mark leaves a bathtub ring around the lake. Look at the point where floating debris (such as pine straw or leaves) normally stops. That is usually the normal high water mark.

Also, a bathtub is round and has steep sides. Having a water level that is one foot below the top is easy to spot in a bathtub. The lake is not round. Some areas of the lake are steep. Others are flat. When the lake is lowered in the fall, dropping two feet might actually be two feet in steep areas, but it might be much more in flat areas.

7.         My property is in Laurens County. How does Greenwood County have the right to tell me what I can do with my property?

Answer: The Greenwood County lake regulations do not affect how you use your property. However, when you enter the lake bed, you are no longer on your property. Greenwood County owns the entire lake bed, including those portions of the lake bed in Newberry and Laurens Counties as well. Greenwood County is no different than any other property owner. We have the right to regulate what happens on our property.

8.         What are the penalties for violating Greenwood County’s regulations?

Answer: The License issued by the federal government to Greenwood County (which gives us permission to have a lake) requires that all regulations be enforced. Violating any regulation carries civil and criminal penalties.

Examples of criminal penalties are imprisonment in jail or the payment of a criminal fine.

Examples of civil penalties are where Greenwood County revokes all permits and requires the violator to remove all encroachments (piers, boat ramps, etc) from the lake. Greenwood County can also block access to the lake from a violator’s property.