Residents living along the shores of Ivy Lake are already seeing a significant water level drop due to partial draining in order to temporarily satisfy state regulators. Dam owners across the state have taken similar actions since Virginia adopted stricter new safety criteria in 2008. Liberty University, which received the 112 acre lake as a donation has agreed to lower the water by as much as 20 feet. Locally, according to the News & Advance, dam regulations have affected sites from Bedford to Amherst. Lynchburg had to make moderate upgrades to the Pedlar River dam in 2010 due in part to the regulations. The city now faces a more significant project for the College Lake dam. The new standards require a dam to withstand a worst-case-scenario storm.
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