TVA River Forecast Center Manager shares the impacts of the current drought

As summer approaches, a majority of Kentucky is already experiencing abnormally dry conditions, and Ben Heath, manager of the Tennessee Valley Authority River Forecast Center, shared how the current drought is impacting regional waterways.

Areas in southwestern Kentucky, including Christian, Todd and Trigg Counties, are in an extreme drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Kentucky Lake, which is connected to Kentucky Dam, is also in the current extreme drought zone.

Kentucky Dam is owned and controlled by the TVA. The power provider controls 49 dams across its service region. Heath has worked with the TVA since 2011 and became the manager of the forecast center in 2024.

The forecast center has six focuses, including flood control, hydropower generation, waterway navigation, drinking water supply, water quality and recreation. As a result of the current drought, Heath says they are not currently concerned about floods. He also shared that hydropower generation accounts for around 10% of the TVA’s total power generation.

With the ongoing drought, Heath says they have become more conservative with how much water is being released by their dams. He says they started filling their reservoirs in late February and early March, which is a month earlier than normal. By filling them early, Health says they were able to capture more rain and runoff water.

Kentucky Lake has reached its summer levels, but Heath says other reservoirs have not reached their typical summer levels. Looking forward, Heath says he hopes the weather pattern changes, but if not, river flows will be lower, which could impact fishing.

Since the TVA has decided to keep its lakes full, Heath says they will likely see less hydropower generation as a result of lower water flows. He says there will still be enough water flow to ensure that rivers remain healthy.

For up-to-date information concerning lake levels, folks can download the TVA Lake Info App.