Harlan County Lake
Harlan County Lake is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Kansas City District. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from USACE NWK District. Published reference elevations are listed below.
Lake Status
13.73 feet below full pool
−13.73 ft vs full pool
- 7-day trend
- Falling
- 7-day change
- Down 0.09 ft
- 30-day change
- Down 0.09 ft
- Last updated
- 1 hour ago
Harlan County Lake is currently 13.73 feet below full pool and has fallen slightly over the past week. Readings show continued drawdown relative to full pool, with levels trending lower over the past week.
Watershed drought conditions
Harlan County, NE · surrounding county from lake location
Severe Drought
Severe drought conditions are present.
Severity
Weekly trend
Improving
Compared with last week
Official drought
Yes
99.5% of the watershed is currently classified as official drought (D1+).
Expected impacts
- Lower stream inflows
- Lake levels may decline faster
- Vegetation is becoming drier
- Minor increase in wildfire risk
U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Sep 8, 2026. Updated weekly. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Harlan County, NE
Key Facts
Managing authority
Waterbody / project type
Official purposes
Full pool
Datum
Current-level source
Project / NID identifier
Dam / watershed (NID design values)
Static design values from a confidently matched National Inventory of Dams record — not live gage readings.
- Normal storage
- 327,600 acre-ft
- Max storage
- 825,700 acre-ft
- Surface area at normal pool
- 13,600 acres
- Drainage area
- 7,636 sq mi
- Spillway capacity (design)
- 485,000 cfs
- Dam structure
- Gravity · 107 ft high · completed 1952
- Hazard classification
- High
- Safety & inspection
- last inspection Jun 12, 2025 · EAP yes
National Inventory of Dams · matched record: Harlan County Dam (NE01066)
How this lake is operated
- Documented project purposes (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Fish and Wildlife Pond, Irrigation, Other, Recreation, Water Supply.
Why the level can change
General factors for reservoirs like this
These are common influences for this type of lake. They do not identify the cause of a specific current change unless an operator update confirms it.
Rainfall & inflows
Rain and upstream river inflows can raise reservoir levels, especially after storms.
Downstream releases
When an operator releases water through a dam, reservoir storage can fall and downstream flows can rise.
Flood-risk operations
Some projects store or release water under flood-risk rules when conditions require it.
Water supply
Some reservoirs support municipal, industrial, irrigation, or regional water-supply needs.
Hydropower
Hydropower projects may pass water through turbines when generating electricity.
Seasonal weather
Dry periods, heat, evaporation, and seasonal rainfall patterns can affect storage over weeks and months.
Published reference elevations
- Full pool
- 1946.00 ft
Published reference elevation. Not necessarily a fixed year-round target for every project.
Current data source
Managing authority: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Kansas City District
Observation source used by Lake Insights: USACE NWK District
Who manages the lake and who publishes the reading Lake Insights displays can differ. Lake Insights does not invent a source label from the managing authority alone.
General education
Shared background — not lake-specific facts
Lake Insights aggregates water level information from authoritative public sources such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA, TVA, Bureau of Reclamation, power utilities, and other official lake operators. We preserve historical observations, calculate trends, and present lake conditions in a consistent format. For USACE NWK District, we link to the official source whenever it is available. Lake Insights does not predict future lake levels unless an official forecast has been published by the managing authority.
Common questions about Harlan County Lake
- Who manages Harlan County Lake?
- Harlan County Lake is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Kansas City District. Lake Insights reports published gauge readings; it does not operate the waterbody.
- What is full pool at Harlan County Lake?
- The published full-pool elevation for Harlan County Lake is 1946.00 ft (NGVD29). Full pool is a published reference elevation — not a prediction of today’s level.
- Where does Lake Insights get the level reading for Harlan County Lake?
- Lake Insights displays the latest available elevation for Harlan County Lake from USACE NWK District. The managing authority (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Kansas City District) may differ from the agency that publishes the observation used on this page.
- What datum is used for Harlan County Lake?
- Elevations for Harlan County Lake are referenced to NGVD29 (MSL).
- What are the documented purposes of Harlan County Lake?
- Documented purposes for Harlan County Lake (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Fish and Wildlife Pond, Irrigation, Other, Recreation, Water Supply.