Wet winter helps water-starved lake

The desert lake contained more than 2.4 million acre-feet of water on June 29, a gain of 118,389 acre-feet since January, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Federal Watermaster Roger Bezayiff said the spring-summer runoff has passed its peak, but the lake probably will continue to receive water most of this month.

Walker Lake, located 150 miles southeast of Reno, gets most of its water from the Walker River, which originates in the Sierra Nevada.

But since the turn of the century, the lake's level has dropped more than 125 feet and its surface area has decreased by more than half due to upstream diversions by farmers.

Federal officials are working to acquire water for the lake, saying its fishery will die off without it.

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