Lake Louise is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much lar ...

Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Luzerne County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania's second-largest county ...

, in the United States. It has a surface area of approximately on

The National Map ''The National Map'' is a collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the effort is to pro ...

and is located entirely in Franklin Township. The lake is dammed by the Lake Louise Dam, which is in poor condition, as of 1980. Lake Louise is situated on Sutton Creek and drains an area of . As of 1980, its watershed is mostly forested. The Lake Louise Lake Association was given a Growing Greener mini-grant in 2012.

Geography, geology, and watershed

The main inflows to Lake Louise are Sutton Creek and two unnamed streams. The main outflow is Sutton Creek. The lake has an elevation of above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

. Under normal conditions, the lake has an area of , a volume of , and a length of . However, the maximum storage capacity is . The lake is upstream of the Susquehanna River. Lake Louise is dammed by the Lake Louise Dam. As of 1980, this dam is in poor condition, with a

spillway A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of water downstream from a dam or levee, typically into the riverbed of the dammed river itself. In the United Kingdom, they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways ensure t ...

capable of handling 45 percent of a probably maximum flood. It was classified as an "unsafe non-emergency dam". The dam is an earthfill dam with a height of , a length of , and a width of at the top. Lake Louise is in the Glaciated Low Plateaus section of the Appalachian Plateaus physiographic province. The main

rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sedime ...

underlying the lake is the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, w ...

-age

Susquehanna Group The Susquehanna Group is a geologic group in Pennsylvania. It preserves fossils dating back to the Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Siluria ...

, which consists of

conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** C ...

siltstone Siltstone, also known as aleurolite, is a clastic sedimentary rock that is composed mostly of silt. It is a form of mudrock with a low clay mineral content, which can be distinguished from shale by its lack of fissility.Blatt ''et al.'' 1980, ...

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

, and

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especia ...

. The watershed of Lake Louise has an area of . As of 1980, the watershed of Lake Louise is mostly forested. Most slopes in the watershed are gentle or moderate. Lake Louise is entirely within the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

quadrangle of Center Moreland.

Hydrology

In October 2007, the concentration of

nitrate Nitrate is a polyatomic ion with the chemical formula . Salts containing this ion are called nitrates. Nitrates are common components of fertilizers and explosives. Almost all inorganic nitrates are soluble in water. An example of an insoluble ...

nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at seve ...

at the inlets to Lake Louise ranged from . In November 2009, the concentration ranged from and in May 2011, the concentration ranged from . At the outlet of Lake Louise, the concentrations on those three dates were , , and , respectively. For comparison, healthy lakes generally have concentrations of less than in the summertime. In October 2007, the concentration of

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ea ...

at the inlets to Lake Louise ranged from . In November 2009, the concentration ranged from and in May 2011, the concentration ranged from . At the outlet of Lake Louise, the concentrations on those three dates were , , and , respectively. For comparison, a phosphorus concentration of more than indicates a

eutrophic Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytoplank ...

lake.

History

Lake Louise was entered into the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1199089. In 2012, the Lake Louise Lake Association was awarded a

Growing Greener Growing may refer to: * Growth (disambiguation) * Growing (band), a noise band based in Brooklyn, New York * ''Growing'' (Sleeping People album), 2007 *Growing (Rina Chinen album) * Growing, a children's song sung on the television program Barney ...

mini-grant for sediment removal, shoreline stabilization,

riparian buffer A riparian buffer or stream buffer is a vegetated area (a " buffer strip") near a stream, usually forested, which helps shade and partially protect the stream from the impact of adjacent land uses. It plays a key role in increasing water quality ...

establishment, and

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species adv ...

control on Lake Louise.

References

External links

Image of Lake Louise
{{DEFAULTSORT:Louise Lakes of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Lakes of Pennsylvania

Geography, geology, and watershed

Hydrology

History

See also

References

External links