Public Meeting On Boone Dam, Lake Levels Set For Thursday

BLOUNTVILLE — If you want to know what the future holds for Boone Lake, you can head to Johnson City for a public meeting Thursday.The event is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m., at the Millennium Centre, across State of Franklin Parkway from East Tennessee State University. Doors will open at 5 p.m.Tennessee Valley Authority officials have promised to reveal at the meeting some sort of long-range repair plan for seepage through the earthen portion of Boone Dam.That issue caused TVA to lower the lake’s level more rapidly and further than normal over this past winter — and to hold it their when spring and summer came.Several hundred people turned out for a public meeting about the lake and dam TVA hosted in March at Daniel Boone High School.In late April, TVA President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Johnson said during a tour of the dam that he hoped to he hopes to announce a permanent fix by late this month.Johnson said then that those working to find answers had tentatively identified the general area likely to be the spot needing the most attention to stop seepage from the earthen section into the river downstream.Johnson said TVA is committed to continued operation of the dam, a return to normal lake levels.But first and foremost, finding the right fix — and getting it right the first time — is the agency’s priority.The concrete section of Boone Dam is not damaged, TVA has said.In April, Johnnson confidently predicted it will remain sound 100 years from now.“We have other dams that are more than 100 years old,” Johnson said.Boone Dam is 160 feet high, and nearly 1,700 feet wide — most of which is the earthen berm.The seepage is being blamed on karst, a geological characteristic common throughout Northeast Tennessee.