3.8	Fishing Creek Lake

Fishing Creek Lake is located downstream of Lake Wylie southeast of Rock Hill in Lancaster and Chester counties, South Carolina. Fishing Creek Lake has a surface area of about 3,191 acres and 67.1 shoreline miles at full pond elevation of 417.2 feet MSL.

3.8.1

Fishing Creek Lake Shoreline Classification

Table 3.8-1 summarizes the shoreline classification for Fishing Creek Lake, based on the July 2001 SMP maps.

Table 3.8-1.

Shoreline Classification for Fishing Creek Lake

Shoreline Classification	Shoreline Miles	Percent of Total
Commercial /Non-Residential	0.1	0.1%
Commercial /Residential	0.0	0.0%
Residential	3.6	5.4%
Business Industrial	0.2	0.3%
Public Recreation	0.2	0.3%
Public Infrastructure	0.9	1.3%
Project Operations	0.8	1.2%
Future Commercial/Non-Residential	23.2	34.6%
Future Commercial/Residential	1.5	2.2%
Future Residential	11.5	17.1%
Future Public Recreation	4.5	6.7%
Impact Minimization Zones	0.5	0.7%
Impact Minimization Zones (Dev)	0.0	0.0%
Environmental Area	18.0	26.8%
Natural Area	2.2	3.3%
Total	67.1	100.0%

 

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3.8.2

Fishing Creek Lake Shallow Water Fish Habitat Survey

Table 3.8-2 summarizes the shoreline classification for Fishing Creek Lake, based on the results of the SWFHS.

Table 3.8-2.

Fishing Creek Lake Shallow Water Habitat Shoreline Classifications (Miles)

Lake	Developed	Sand	Cobble	Woody Debris	Vegetated	Natural	Undeveloped No Critical Habitat	Total
Fishing C.	4.6	0.4	0.1	11.7	17.2	0.2	29.1	63

Fishing Creek Lake Woody Debris Study

See the final results of the Woody Debris Study in Appendix A.

In 1999, Duke Power implemented a cooperative study to evaluate the importance of coarse woody debris as shallow water fish habitat. The study was developed cooperatively with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), and was conducted in three Duke Power lakes (i.e. James, Hickory, and Fishing Creek) located on the Catawba-Wateree Project in North Carolina and South Carolina. Eight 100-m shoreline transects were selected in coarse woody debris, developed and undeveloped habitats and associated fish populations were sampled using daytime boat electrofishing in spring (March or April), summer (July), and fall (October or November) of 1999-2000. Coarse woody debris, developed and undeveloped habitats were defined as: littoral zones composed of >50% felled trees that were >25.4 cm in diameter at chest height, littoral zones composed of >50% piers and riprap, and undeveloped littoral zones with no piers, riprap, and <50%coarse woody debris, respectively.

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3.8.3

Fishing Creek Lake Cultural Resources Assessment

Within the Fishing Creek Lake Study Area, there are 18 previously recorded cultural resources including 3 architectural resources and 15 archaeological sites. Architectural resources include a cemetery, a waterway, and a bridge. The architectural resources range in date from the eighteenth to the twentieth centuries. The archeological sites range in date from the Early Archaic through the Historic periods.

The majority of the archaeological sites contain lithic or ceramic artifacts. Many of the sites have Archaic and Woodland period components. Three of the sites are Middle Archaic sites. A possible Catawba Indian burial site is under water.

Of the 15 recorded archaeological sites, the Landsford Canal site is the only site listed in the National Register.

The Landsford Canal is listed in the National Register.

The information on both the archaeological and architectural sites from the state files is being used in preparation of the predictive model to assign the shoreline on Fishing Creek Lake either a High, Medium, Low, or No probability for the occurrence of cultural resources. Prior to the completion of the model non-exempt activities such as excavation projects, commercial marina development, and certain conveyance projects will be provided to the appropriate SHPO for review before construction or excavation activity begins within the project boundary. To ensure the potential impact to cultural resources is properly evaluated after completion of the predictive model, Lake Management will review the predictive model for all non-exempt activities. Applicants for all non-exempt lake use permitting activities in medium and high probability areas will be required to consult with the appropriate SHPO regarding their proposal.

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3.8.4

Fishing Creek Lake Recreational Use and Carrying Capacity Assessment

Fishing Creek Lake Existing Recreational Areas

There are 2 developed Duke Power-owned public recreational access locations on Fishing Creek Lake. There is one state park facility and one SCDNR boating access area located along Fishing Creek Lake. Figure 3.8-1 shows the public recreational access locations. There are no public commercial non-residential or commercial residential marinas located on Fishing Creek Lake. The following sections describe the Duke Power-owned public access area facilities at Fishing Creek Lake.

In the 1994 SMP, Duke Power did not propose to make any improvements to the two access areas on the lake. Duke Power did add 16 acres of land to the Fishing Creek access area.

Existing Duke Power-Owned Public Access Areas

The developed Duke Power-owned public access areas provide about 25 acres and 4,395 feet of shoreline frontage of public access at Fishing Creek Lake. Combined, the developed access areas have 2 public boat ramps and about 93 vehicle/trailer parking spaces. Table 3.8-3 summarizes the facilities at the public access areas.

Table 3.8-3.

Fishing Creek Lake Duke Power-Owned Public Access Areas

Access Area Name	Acreage	Shoreline Frontage (ft)	Boat Ramps	Loading Piers	Fishing Piers	Car Parking (Spaces)	V/T Parking (Spaces)
Cane Creek	4.1	1,129	1	0	0	0	35
Fishing Creek	20.4	3,266	1	0	0	0	58
Total	24.5	4,395	2	0	0	0	93

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State and County Public Recreational Facilities

There is one state park, Landsford Canal State Park, in the northern portion of Fishing Creek Lake and one SCDNR boat access area in the middle portion of Fishing Creek Lake. Table 3.8-4 summarizes the recreational facilities provided at the Landsford Canal State Park. The SCDNR boat access provides a parking area and boat launch.

Click Here to View Full Figure 3.8-1 Fishing Creek Lake Public Recreational Access Areas

 

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Table 3.8-4

Summary of Landsford Canal State Park Public Recreational Facilities

Site Description/Facility	Number
Picnic shelter	1
Community building	1
Picnic tables	20
Nature trail	1 mile
Canoe trail	2.5 miles
Museum	1 (by appointment)
Playground	1
River fishing	1

Existing Commercial and Private Recreational Access

There are no public commercial non-residential or commercial residential marinas located on Fishing Creek Lake. Private access to Fishing Creek Lake is through private marinas and private piers along the Fishing Creek Lake shoreline. Table 3.8-5 shows the estimated number of private piers.

Table 3.8-5.

Summary of Fishing Creek Lake Private Recreational Access Facilities

Type of Facility	No. Private Facilities
Piers	110

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Fishing Creek Lake Recreational Use Assessment

Visitation figures for the public access areas on Fishing Creek Lake were derived based on estimates of the traffic entering the Duke Power-owned public access areas. Total estimated visitation during the 1999 study period for Fishing Creek Lake at these sites was 58,802 visits. Figure 3.8-2 shows the distribution of the visitation for each month at Fishing Creek Lake for the Duke Power-owned public access areas during the 1999 study period. A visit is considered a vehicle or vehicle/trailer entering the site for any part of a day.

Figure 3.8-2.

Fishing Creek Lake Estimate of Recreational Visitation at the Duke Power-Owned Access Areas

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Table 3.8-6 summarizes the estimated recreational visitation based on traffic counter data for the sampled sites during the 1999 study period. Of the recreational visitation on Fishing Creek Lake, about 64 percent of the recreational visitation occurred at the Fishing Creek access area. Based on survey data input, the estimated ratio for annual visits to the project area for Survey B respondents (respondents that use both public and private access areas) compared to Survey C respondents (respondents at the public access areas) was a ratio of 1.1 to 1. The estimated overall recreational visitation for Fishing Creek Lake for the 1999 study period totaled 64,067 visits.

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Table 3.8-6.

1999 Fishing Creek Lake Estimated Recreational Visitation at Duke Power-Owned Access Areas

Fishing Creek Lake Boat Carrying Capacity Assessment

The overall boat carrying capacity is assessed based on the peak boating use estimates obtained during the flyovers in the 1999 study period. The available boating acreage was adjusted from the base boats per acreage estimate (see Table 3.8-7) by the following factors (Warren and Rea, 1989, as modified):

Factor		Adjustment
1.	Location of the lake in relation to population served	0
2.	Multiple use of water area	-
3.	Shoreline configuration	-
4.	Amount of open water	-
5.	Amount of facility and shoreline development	0
6.	Crowding rating	0
	Total	-3

Table 3.8-7.

Boat Type Acreage Adjustment (Source:  Modified from Warren and Rea, 1989)

Boat Activity Type	Low	-4	-3	-2	-1	Base	1	2	3	4	High
Fishing	10.0	9.0	8.0	6.0	5.0	4.3	4.0	3.3	3.0	2.3	2.0
Canoe/Kayak	2.5	2.3	2.0	1.8	1.5	1.3	1.1	1.0	0.8	0.7	0.5
Motor Boating	18.0	17.0	15.0	13.0	11.0	9.0	8.0	7.0	6.0	5.0	3.0
Sailing	10.0	9.0	8.0	6.0	5.0	4.3	4.0	3.3	3.0	2.3	2.0
Jet Skiing	10.0	9.0	8.0	6.0	5.0	4.3	4.0	3.3	3.0	2.3	2.0
Water Skiing	20.0	18.0	17.0	15.0	14.0	12.0	11.0	10.0	9.0	8.0	7.0

Table 3.8-8 summarizes the assessment of the optimum overall boat capacity based on the usable water surface acreage and the boating activity mix identified from the surveys. Table 3.8-9 provides the assessment of the percent capacity of the boat use for Fishing Creek Lake on the peak day during the 1999 study period. Fishing Creek Lake during the weekday was estimated at 1 percent capacity, during the weekend at 4 percent capacity, and during the peak holiday period at 5 percent capacity for overall boating use.

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Table 3.8-8.

Fishing Creek Lake Boat Carrying Capacity Assessment

Boat Activity	Usable Acreage	Use Factor	Opt. No. Boats	% Usage	Boat Activity Mix	Persons/ Boat	Total Users
Fishing	3,112	8.0	389	52%	202	3.14	634
Canoe/Kayak	3,112	2.0	1,556	14%	218	3.26	711
Motor Boating	2,282	15.0	152	19%	29	3.90	113
Sailing	2,282	8.0	285	0%	-	3.36	-
Jet Skiing	2,282	8.0	285	0%	-	3.85	-
Water Skiing	2,282	17.0	134	14%	19	4.39	84
Total				100%	468		1,542

Table 3.8-9

Fishing Creek Lake Estimated 1999 Study Period Boat Capacity

Peak Use	Weekday	% Capacity	Weekend	% Capacity	Holiday	% Capacity
No. Boats	4	1%	21	4%	23	5%

The overall boat carrying capacity assessment provides an assessment of the total surface area available for boating use. To assess the areas of the lakes with higher density of boating use, the general location of boating activity was recorded during the flyovers for each day of aerial coverage. Figure 3.8-3 shows the location of boats during the peak use day for Fishing Creek Lake. Figure 3.8-4 shows the boating density on Fishing Creek Lake for the peak use day and areas with the greatest clustering of boating activity. Figure 3.8-5 shows the boat density map based on the composite of the five highest boating use days. This figure illustrates the areas with the most boating use during the peak use days during the study period and provides an assessment of areas with high density boating during this same period.

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Based on the boat capacity study in Table 3.8-9, there are no crowding problems on Fishing Creek Lake. The highest capacity reached was about 5% capacity on a holiday weekend and 4% capacity on weekends. The Peak Use Day Boat Density map, Figure 3.8-4 (for only one day), does not show any areas where the boat density is higher than the rest of the lake. When averaging the four highest boat count days, Figure 3.8-5, there are no areas where boat densities are higher than the rest of the lake. For all of the remaining times during the year the boat density levels are extremely low.

Click Here to View Full Figure 3.8-3 Fishing Creek Lake Peak Use Day Boat Counts

Click Here to View Full Figure 3.8-4 Fishing Creek Lake Peak Use Day Boat Density Map

Click Here to View Full Figure 3.8-5 Fishing Creek Lake Composite Peak Use Boat Density Map

Fishing Creek Lake Estimated Future Recreational Demand

Table 3.8-10 provides the population projections for the counties within 50-60 miles of Fishing Creek Lake. Population projections were conducted for the impact zone using a combination of 1970 - 1990 population data and 2000 and 2010 population projections from U.S. Census Bureau data; these figures were used to make projections for 2030, 2040, and 2050.

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Table 3.8-10.

Fishing Creek Lake Estimated Population Projections for the Impact Zone

County	1999	2000	2010	2020	2030	2040	2050
Lancaster	51,750	57,500	58,500	64,250	69,694	5,598	82,003
Chester	30,690	34,100	36,100	39,150	41,354	43,682	46,142
York	144,990	161,100	198,600	214,710	258,662	311,612	375,401
Kershaw	44,820	49,800	55,300	60,280	67,317	75,176	83,951
Lee	18,270	20,300	20,400	22,430	23,384	24,378	25,414