Lake Koshkonong

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Lake Koshkonong
Location	Jefferson County, Wisconsin
Coordinates	42°52′27″N, 88°57′29″WCoordinates: 42°52′27″N, 88°57′29″W
Lake type	reservoir
Primary inflows	Rock River
Primary outflows	Rock River
Basin countries	United States
Surface area	10,500 acres (42 km²)
Average depth	6 ft (2 m)
Surface elevation	774 ft (236 m)

Lake Koshkonong is a lake in southern Wisconsin. It lies along the Rock River, 5.5 mi (8.9 km). down-river from Fort Atkinson, primarily in southwestern Jefferson County, although small portions of the lake extend into southeastern Dane and northern Rock counties.

Lake Koshkonong shares its name with Fort Koshkonong, a fort of some importance during the Black Hawk War. It is a manmade lake, and at the time the fort was active, before the Rock River was dammed, the area was actually a cattail marsh with the Rock River running through the middle. The Indianford Dam several miles down the Rock River from Lake Koshkonong makes it one of the larger lakes in the state of Wisconsin (10,500 acres) but it remains very shallow with an average depth of six feet.

[edit] Proposed nuclear power plant

In the 1970s, Lake Koshkonong was the primary site considered for a billion dollar nuclear power station. Wisconsin Electric Power Co., Wisconsin Power and Light Co., Madison Gas and Electric Co and Wisconsin Public Service Corp jointly proposed the project. In 1974, it was estimated that the utilities would lose $40 million if the two unit, 900 MW each, facility was not approved. At that time, the timetable had already slipped to a 1983/1984 commissioning.^[1] The plan met with heavy resistance from environmental groups and was eventually killed in 1977 by concerns regarding the Lake's shallow depth during drought conditions. Attempts were made to salvage the $40 million dollar investment by moving facility to Haven, Wisconsin, near Sheboygan, Wisconsin. However, any plans for construction of a nuclear station in Wisconsin were scrapped by the Three Mile Island accident. The plant was planned to be built on Vickerman Road, east of the lake and east of Wisconsin Highway 26.( 42°51′37″N, 88°53′27″W)^[2]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Rock Koshkonong Lake District
• Lake Koshkonong date from the USGS
• Lake Koshkonong Wetland Association
• Historical tidbits about the Lake from the Janesville Gazette
• USGS GNIS: Lake Koshkonong