SANDPOINT — The annual winter drawdown of Lake Pend Oreille is set to get underway on Tuesday, Sept. 18, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The lake’s level will be kept at 2,062 feet above sea level until that date. The lake level is expected to be held at 2,061 feet until the end of September in order to facilitate the Head of the Pend Oreille Regatta in Priest River.

The lake will be drafted by 0.2-0.3 feet per day, depending on inflows, Logan Osgood-Zimmerman, the Upper Columbia’s senior water manager for the corps’ Seattle District, said during an Albeni Falls operations update in Priest River on Wednesday.

The lake is expected to reach its full winter drawdown elevation of 2,051 feet by the middle of November, when Flexible Winter Power Operations will come into play.

The flexible winter power operations, known as FWPO in regulatory jargon, allows Lake Pend Oreille to be filled and drafted three times between 2,051-2,056 feet from January to March.

The operation creates additional power production opportunities for the Bonneville Power Administration.

In news that is dreadful for skiers and snowboarders — the Amy Corps of Engineers is anticipating an El Niño weather pattern this winter, which means higher than normal temperatures and less than average precipitation.

“We’re expecting warmer and drier conditions,” said Brian Warner, a meteorologist for the corps.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.