Tennessee Valley Authority
Kentucky Reservoir
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Ecological health rating
Kentucky Reservoir rated good in 2005 monitoring by TVA.
Swimming advisories
The states of Kentucky and Tennessee have not issued any advisories against swimming in Kentucky Reservoir.
Fish consumption advisories
The state of Kentucky has issued an advisory for all Kentucky streams and reservoirs because of mercury contamination. The state of Tennessee has issued a fish consumption advisory for the Buffalo River from the mouth ro river mile 31.6.
Related Links
More about Kentucky Reservoir
Sport
fishing ratings
Get
the facts on the availability of important sport species.
Spring
sportfish survey results
View
the results from TVA’s latest black bass population survey.
General information
Monitoring
river conditions
Find
out how TVA evaluates the river system’s ecological health
and suitability for human use.
Ecological health rating
TVA monitored Kentucky Reservoir annually from 1991 through 1995 to establish baseline data on the reservoir’s ecological health under a range of weather and flow conditions. Kentucky is now monitored every other year.
The ecological health of Kentucky Reservoir rated good in 2005. Kentucky has rated good all years except in 1995 when the rating was a “high fair”.
Kentucky Reservoir Ecological Health Ratings, 1994-2005
Click chart for raw data.
The table below shows the ratings for individual ecological health indicators at Kentucky in 2005. These ratings are briefly explained in the paragraphs that follow.
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Dissolved oxygen
Dissolved oxygen rated good at two monitoring locations — near Kentucky Dam and mid-reservoir — and fair at the Big Sandy embayment location. The fair rating was due to low dissolved oxygen levels near bottom in May and July.
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll levels were elevated at the forebay and Big Sandy embayment monitoring locations in 2005, rating poor. Levels at the mid-reservoir were within the expected range and rated good. Chlorophyll typically rates good at the mid-reservoir and poor at the forebay and in the Big Sandy embayment.
Fish
The fish community rated fair at the three locations — forebay, Big Sandy embayment, and inflow — and good at the mid-reservoir location. Prior to 2001, the fish community typically rated fair at all locations. Since 2001, ratings have shifted to “high fair” or good.
Bottom life
Monitoring results for bottom life in 2005 were generally similar to previous years, with three sites rating good and one site rating poor. The lower rating at the embayment is due to relatively sparse populations predominantly composed of animals able to tolerate poor water quality.
Sediment
Sediment quality rated good at all locations. No pesticides or PCBs were detected, and concentrations of metals were within the expected background levels.
Swimming advisories
TVA has not issued any swimming advisories for Kentucky Reservoir.
Kentucky:
- E. coli bacteria levels in samples collected in 2007 were within the state of Kentucky’s guidelines for water contact with the following exceptions.
- Kentucky Dam State Park Beach: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
- Hickory Hills Resort Beach: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
Tennessee:
E. coli bacteria levels in samples collected in 2007 were within the state of Tennessee’s guidelines for water contact with the following exceptions.
- County Junction Resort Beach: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
- Nathan Bedford Forest State Park Beach: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
- Little Eagle RV Park Swim Site: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
- Paris Landing State Park Beach: Exceeded the single sample maximum 1 of 10 sampling events
The locations sampled in 2007 were:
Site Name |
Location |
County |
State |
|---|---|---|---|
Boyds Branch Boat Ramp |
Tennessee River Mile 54.5L |
Calloway |
KY |
Kentucky Dam State Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 22.4 |
Marshall |
KY |
Hillman Ferry Campground Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 28.5R |
Lyon |
KY |
Moor's Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 30.5, Bear Creek M 0.5 |
Marshall |
KY |
Barge Island Recreation Area Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 31.0 |
Marshall |
KY |
Big Bear Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 30, Bear Creek M 2.5 |
Marshall |
KY |
Girl Scout Camp Swim Site |
Tennessee River Mile 31.9 |
Marshall |
KY |
Hester's Spot-In-The-Sun Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 33.2 |
Marshall |
KY |
Shawnee Bay Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 34.5, WF Bee Creek Mile 0.6 |
Marshall |
KY |
Hickory Hill Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 34.5, WF Bee Creek Mile 0.8 |
Marshall |
KY |
Four Rivers Boy Scout Camp Swim Site |
Tennessee River Mile 37.7 |
Marshall |
KY |
Cedar Knob Resort Beach |
Jonathan Creek Mile 3.2 |
Marshall |
KY |
Pirate's Cove Beach |
Jonathan Creek Mile 4.4 |
Marshall |
KY |
Kenlake State Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 42.1 |
Marshall |
KY |
Pacer Point Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 44.5 |
Calloway |
KY |
Paradise Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 48.5, Snipe Creek Mile 0.2 |
Calloway |
KY |
Kentucky Christian Camp Swim Site |
Tennessee River Mile 31.9, Bear Creek |
Marshall |
KY |
Thoroughbred Recreation Area Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 52.0L, Wildcat Creek Mile 0.3 |
Calloway |
KY |
Missing Hills Campground Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 62.5, Cypress Creek Mile 1.0 |
Calloway |
KY |
Piney Campground Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 62.0R |
Stewart |
TN |
Paris Landing State Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 66.3L |
Henry |
TN |
Big Eagle Recreation Area Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 67.0L, Eagle Creek Mile 1.0 |
Henry |
TN |
Buchanans Condos Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 68L, Eagle Creek Mile 2.5 |
Henry |
TN |
Girl Scouts of America Camp Hazelwood Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 67.5, Big Sandy River Mile 3.5 |
Henry |
TN |
Country Junction Resort Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 67.5, Big Sandy River Mile 12.5 |
Henry |
TN |
Nathan Bedford Forest State Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 96.0L |
Humphreys |
TN |
Lakeshore Methodist Camp Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 97.0 |
Benton |
TN |
Eva Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 98.0L, Cypress Creek Mile 5.0 |
Benton |
TN |
Boy Scouts of America Mack Morris Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 103.5, Birdsong Creek Mile 3.3 |
Benton |
TN |
Mousetail State Park Beach |
Tennessee River Mile 133.0R, Spring Creek |
Perry |
TN |
Beech Bend Public Use Area Boat Ramp |
Tennessee River Mile 136.0L |
Decatur |
TN |
Fat Daddy's Marina Swim Site |
Tennessee River Mile 68.7R, Standing Rock Creek |
Stewart |
TN |
Little Eagle RV Park Swim Site |
Tennessee River Mile 67.0L, Eagle Creek |
Henry |
TN |
Fish consumption advisories
The state of Kentucky has issued a fish consumption advisory for all Kentucky streams and reservoirs because of mercury contamination. Pregnant women, nursing mothers, and children are advised to eat no more than one meal per week of larger, older fish. The state of Tennessee has issued a fish consumption advisory for the Buffalo River from the mouth to river mile 31.6.
TVA collected channel catfish and largemouth bass from portions of the reservoir for tissue analysis in fall 2006. The results, which were similar to those of previous years, will be provided to state agencies in Kentucky and Tennessee. TVA will analyze fish from Kentucky Reservoir again in fall 2007.
