Kentucky Reservoir

Ecological health rating

The ecological health of Kentucky Reservoir rated good in 2007. Kentucky has rated good all years, except in 1995 when the rating was at the upper end of the fair range.

TVA monitors four locations on Kentucky Reservoir—the deep, still water near the dam, called the forebay; the middle part of the reservoir; the Big Sandy embayment; and the riverlike area at the extreme upper end of the reservoir, called the inflow—usually on a two-year cycle.

Kentucky Reservoir Ecological Health Ratings, 1994-2007

Click chart for raw data.

The table below shows the ratings for individual ecological health indicators at Kentucky in 2007. These ratings are briefly explained in the paragraphs that follow.

Monitoring locations	Dissolved oxygen	Chlorophyll	Fish	Bottom life	Sediment
Ecological Health Indicators at Kentucky Reservoir, 2007
Forebay	Fair	Poor	Good	Good	Good
Mid-reservoir	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good
Big Sandy embayment	Poor	Poor	Fair	Fair	Good
Inflow			Fair	Good
Dissolved oxygen Dissolved oxygen ratings varied by location: fair at the forebay, good at the mid-reservoir, and poor in the Big Sandy embayment. Dissolved oxygen rated fair at the forebay because levels were low (less than two milligrams per liter) in a small area along the bottom during July and August and poor at the Big Sandy embayment because up to 25 percent of the water column contained low dissolved oxygen during the summer. Chlorophyll Chlorophyll concentrations were elevated at the forebay and Big Sandy embayment monitoring locations, rating poor. Concentrations at the mid-reservoir location were within the expected range and rated good. These ratings are consistent with previous years. Fish The fish community rated good at both the forebay and mid-reservoir locations, fair at the Big Sandy embayment, and at the upper end of the fair range at the inflow. Ratings for the fish community have varied between fair and good at all locations, with more frequent “high fair” or good ratings in recent years. The fair rating at the embayment was primarily because the number of different species collected was slightly lower than at the other monitoring locations. Bottom life Monitoring results for bottom life were generally similar to previous years. The Big Sandy embayment rated fair, and the other monitoring locations all rated good. The lower rating at the embayment was due to the relatively sparse population, which was 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. Sediment quality has rated good in Kentucky Reservoir, except in 1999 and 2001 when it rated fair at the Big Sandy embayment due to slightly elevated concentrations of arsenic. See definitions of ecological health indicators and monitoring locations.

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.