LAKEPORT, Calif. – With Clear Lake still well into flood stage and reports of impacts on lakeshore properties due to boat traffic, the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday added an extra item to its agenda in order to discuss and accept a temporary closure of Clear Lake to motorized vessels.

In a 4-0 vote – with Supervisor Jeff Smith absent – the board approved an updated urgency ordinance that immediately closed Clear Lake to all motorized vessels and other motorized vehicles except for boats operated by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The urgency ordinance will remain in place for no more than 60 days, or until the board takes further action.

Kayaks, paddled craft, wind-powered vessels and other nonmotorized boats, as well as swimming are still allowed, officials said.

County officials were not able to say exactly when such an action was previously taken on Clear Lake, which is at the heart of the county’s tourism economy and a renowned bass fishing lake.

At the time of the decision was made Tuesday morning, Clear Lake’s elevation was 9.68 feet Rumsey. Flood stage is 9 feet Rumsey, and Clear Lake isn’t expected to fall below that level for about two weeks due to an upcoming storm, according to Lake County Water Resources Director Phil Moy.

The matter was not originally on the agenda, but it emerged during a board discussion with Sheriff Brian Martin regarding the continuation of a local emergency due to the recent storms.

Martin referred to the recently approved urgency ordinance to reduce speeds on Clear Lake. Last month, the board had approved a 5-mile-per-hour speed limit on the lake, following up last week by establishing a “no wake zone” and a prohibition of boats within 2,500 feet of shore due to flooding for lakeshore properties.

He said the county is continuing to deal with issues caused by the heavy rainfall and runoff, including flooding in Scotts Valley, and the sheriff’s office is working with Water Resources to clear debris that’s been washed into the lake.

Supervisor Tina Scott said she was at a lakeside home on Monday, assisting with sandbagging the property. She said a boat went by very slowly, and even though there wasn’t much of a wake, waves pushed water up and over the sandbags that were being placed.

“We all just need to be very aware,” she said.

Supervisor Jim Steele also noted that docks on the lake are starting to fall apart due to the high water.

Martin said that even if a wake isn’t seen on the surface, there is action under the water, and that can cause issues.

“At what point do we say, no boats at all?” asked Supervisor Rob Brown, adding that when the lake gets to a certain level, it may need to be closed. “It may be there now.”

The rest of the board agreed, voting to add the consideration of an updated urgency ordinance to the agenda.

They brought the discussion back later in the morning, with Martin and Moy sitting down with the board to consider the matter.

“I don’t want to do anything unless you guys think it’s OK,” Brown told Martin and Moy.

Martin said it was a good discussion to have. While he deferred to Moy as to what lake level should trigger a closer, Martin asked that the no wake provisions be removed and measurable speed limits be set on the lake for periods when water levels are high.

“Well, clearly, this has been a learning experience for all of us,” said Moy.

He agreed with Martin that the ordinance with its no wake provisions was unenforceable, and the public either didn’t know about it or wasn’t following it based on reports he was getting of boats on the lake traveling too close to shore.

Moy agreed that it would be good to set parameters for when no motor boats should be allowed on the lake, suggesting the 9 feet Rumsey elevation level of Clear Lake as a place to start.

Brown said he didn’t believe there were upcoming bass tournaments that would be impacted, adding that people around the lake needed to be given a rest from boat action.

“I think we need to make sure we’re taking care of the people in our community,” said Scott.

As County Counsel Anita Grant revised the previous urgency ordinance with the new language, Martin pointed out that state Harbors and Navigation Code gives local bodies like the Board of Supervisors the authority to take such actions as closing the lake.

There was no public comment on the item during the meeting, but there was an effort to anticipate community concerns, including economic impact.

Martin said the county is in a state of emergency, and the action was necessary due to the potential for damage. He acknowledged that it was going to be temporarily inconvenient for people and cause an economic impact.

Both he and Moy indicated they planned to bring back a permanent ordinance to have in place in case of future, similar emergencies.

“We have learned a lot,” said Moy, who joined the county last month. He added that the patchwork approach the county was taking in the matter wasn’t good for anybody.

Grant suggested continuing the urgency ordinance until such time as conditions on the lake are determined not to be a danger to public safety.

The board ultimately approved that updated urgency ordinance at the end of a nearly half-hour discussion.

Later on Tuesday, neither Moy nor Brown could say when the lake was last similarly closed to motorized vessels, although Moy said he had heard it was done during previous flooding in the 1990s.

Moy said he didn’t like having to take the action. “It’s going to have adverse economic consequences,” he said, especially for fishing guides and others whose livelihoods depend on the lake.

Brown said later on Tuesday that he already was getting angry email about the lake closure.

In one such email, which he shared with Lake County News, a business owner told Brown that, by making the decision, he was putting people out of work. Lake County News wasn’t able to reach the business owner on Tuesday evening for additional comment.

“I don’t know of any other solution though to protect people’s property,” Brown said.

Clear Lake’s level has been dropping, but Moy said it’s a “very, very slow” process, even with the Cache Creek Dam wide open and releasing water at a high rate. The dam’s releases on Tuesday were topping 4,100 cubic feet per second, according to the United State Geological Survey.

Moy estimated that, without rain, the lake’s level drops about one inch a day, which would mean it would take time for the lake to drop out of flood stage.

And he said that process is expected to be held up due to storm forecast to begin on Wednesday.

Areas of Lake County around Clear Lake remain under a flood warning issued by the National Weather Service, which is forecasting rain on Wednesday – with heavy rain expected on Wednesday night – and continued chances of rain into next Tuesday.

Clear Lake remained was at 9.63 feet Rumsey early Wednesday, according to the United States Geological Survey gauge on the lake at Lakeport.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s California Nevada River Forecast Center anticipates the storms will cause Clear Lake’s level to rise again slightly – to about 9.7 feet Rumsey – before it begins to recede over the weekend.

That forecast does not expect Clear Lake’s elevation to top 9.8 feet Rumsey, as it did last weekend during the previous round of storms.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.