What Nobody Tells You About Herrington Lake

The Coal Ash History: Documented, Disputed, and Ongoing

This is the most significant disclosure issue at Herrington Lake and the one least likely to appear in a real estate agent's presentation. The E.W. Brown Generating Station — Kentucky Utilities' power plant on the shore of Herrington Lake in Mercer County — has burned coal since the 1950s. Coal ash ponds associated with the plant have leaked contaminants including selenium, arsenic, and boron into groundwater that flows into the lake. This is documented in KU's own testing, in Kentucky Division of Water records, and in independent scientific studies.

The Kentucky Division of Water's testing found that 9 out of 10 fish tissue samples collected near the E.W. Brown plant had selenium levels exceeding Kentucky water quality standards. A biologist retained by Earthjustice found physical deformities — scoliosis, craniofacial abnormalities — in approximately 12% of fish sampled near the plant, a rate far above the 0.5% background deformity rate. State regulators documented contaminated water containing arsenic at levels 98 times the maximum allowable limit flowing from the site into the lake.

KU commissioned an independent study completed in 2019 by Ramboll, an international environmental consulting firm. Ramboll concluded that KU's operations have had no significant impacts on water quality or fish populations in Herrington Lake as a whole, and that the water is safe for recreational use and meets drinking water standards for Danville and Lancaster, both of which draw municipal water from the lake. KU has spent more than $100 million closing its ash ponds at E.W. Brown and constructing new treatment and disposal facilities under EPA coal ash regulations.

Earthjustice, representing the Kentucky Waterways Alliance and Sierra Club, disputes the conclusions of KU's study, arguing that the same data confirms significant contamination in inlets near the plant and that the underlying source — millions of cubic yards of buried coal ash in contact with groundwater — has not been eliminated. Federal litigation over the contamination has been ongoing since 2017, moving through multiple courts and appeals.

What this means for buyers: the contamination history is real, documented, and not fully resolved. KU's position is that the lake is safe and improvements have addressed the source. Environmental groups' position is that the contamination is ongoing and inadequately addressed. State officials have characterized the lake as safe for swimming, fishing, and drinking. The current status of any fish consumption advisory for Herrington Lake should be verified directly with the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection (dep.ky.gov) and the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources before purchasing — particularly for buyers who plan to eat fish they catch from the lake near the plant. The contamination is concentrated near the E.W. Brown site on the Mercer County shore; buyers purchasing on the Garrard County side of the lake, further from the plant, are purchasing in a different part of the lake from where documented sampling elevated levels occurred. This does not eliminate the disclosure concern but it is material context for where specifically on the lake property is located.

Kentucky Utilities Owns the Shoreline — Not the Federal Government

Buyers who have researched Lake Cumberland (USACE), Kentucky Lake (TVA), or Dale Hollow (USACE) arrive at Herrington Lake with a federal-agency mental model for how shoreline ownership and dock permitting work. That model does not apply here. Kentucky Utilities Company owns the Herrington Lake shoreline to elevation 760 feet above sea level. KU is a private investor-owned electric utility, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation, not a government agency. It operates under FERC licensing as a hydroelectric facility, not under the Corps of Engineers or TVA regulatory framework.

The practical consequence: dock permits at Herrington Lake are issued by county governments — Mercer, Garrard, and Boyle counties each have adopted ordinances for floating structures on the lake — not by KU directly and not by any federal agency with a published shoreline management plan. The permit application goes to the County Judge Executive's office in the relevant county. The permits are described as relatively inexpensive and primarily serve to document structures and ensure materials compliance. This is fundamentally different from the USACE Shoreline Use Permit process or TVA Section 26a permit process that governs most other Kentucky lake properties.

What this means practically: buyers need to understand that their waterfront property abuts KU-owned land, and that KU's operating decisions about the hydroelectric facility directly affect the lake level, the water quality, and the future of the shoreline. KU is not a public agency subject to FOIA-style transparency requirements, and its operating priorities center on power generation and regulatory compliance — recreational use is an important secondary consideration but not the primary mission. Buyers on TVA or USACE lakes have a federal public interest backstop built into the regulatory framework; buyers on Herrington Lake have a private utility as the shoreline owner.

Water Level Is Rainfall-Dependent, Not Managed Like a Corps Lake

Herrington Lake's water level is not managed on a predictable seasonal schedule the way Corps of Engineers storage reservoirs are. The Herrington Lake Conservation League describes the situation plainly: levels fluctuate considerably throughout the year depending on how much rainfall occurs in the Dix River watershed, how much water KU uses to run the hydroelectric turbines, and other losses including evaporation and Danville's drinking water withdrawals. KU tries to maintain summer pool at approximately 740 feet above sea level and winter pool at approximately 725 feet — a 15-foot seasonal target range — but the ability to control levels is limited because only rainfall can add water to the lake.

The extreme case: Herrington Lake can rise 15 feet in a single day when heavy rainfall hits the Dix River watershed, even when little or no rain falls on the lakeside properties themselves. Conversely, during drought years the lake can drop well below target levels for extended periods. Buyers accustomed to USACE or TVA lakes where the Corps or TVA controls releases and publishes annual guide curves will find Herrington Lake's water level behavior more unpredictable. For dock design and property access, this means building for a wider range of possible conditions rather than the more predictable seasonal range of managed storage lakes.

To check current lake level: call 859-748-4685 for KU's daily recorded message, or visit USGS.GOV or NOAA.GOV for gauge data. Before making an offer on any Herrington Lake waterfront property, checking the level history over the prior 12 months provides useful context on the specific year's conditions relative to long-term averages.

The 12-Inch Largemouth Minimum Is One of Only Five in Kentucky

Herrington Lake has a 12-inch minimum size limit on largemouth bass — one of only five Kentucky lakes with this regulation, the others being Green River Lake, Guist Creek Lake, Martins Fork Lake, and Paintsville Lake. On most Kentucky lakes the largemouth minimum is 10 inches. The 12-inch minimum at Herrington reflects a management decision to allow more fish to reach maturity and contribute to a quality recreational fishery. The KDFWR rates the Herrington largemouth fishery as good to excellent, with good numbers of fish over 12 to 15 inches and potential for trophy-size fish at 23 inches.

For buyers who fish, this regulation matters both for fishing practice and for understanding the lake's management philosophy. It signals that KDFWR has invested in maintaining Herrington's largemouth fishery quality through active regulation, not just stocking. It also means that anglers who keep largemouth at 10 or 11 inches — legal on most Kentucky lakes — are in violation of Herrington's specific regulations. Always verify current Kentucky fishing regulations at fw.ky.gov before fishing, as regulations can be adjusted by KDFWR in any given year.

The Sewer Infrastructure Gap Is Being Addressed

Historically, much of the Herrington Lake residential area has lacked public sewer service, relying on private septic systems. In November 2025, officials in Boyle and Mercer counties broke ground on a new sewer project for the Herrington Lake area, with Kentucky's lieutenant governor present for the ceremony. This is a meaningful infrastructure development for the lake community — public sewer service where it arrives will reduce the maintenance burden on individual property owners, potentially support higher-density development in served areas, and address a longstanding environmental concern about septic systems along the lake shoreline.

Buyers should confirm the specific timeline and service area for the new sewer project when evaluating properties, as not all areas of the lake will be served immediately or at all. Properties in the initial service area may see infrastructure cost assessments as part of the project, which could represent both an upfront cost and a long-term property value improvement. Properties outside the service area will continue to rely on private septic systems and should be evaluated accordingly.