As water levels in Little Lake and portions of the Trent-Severn Waterway are lowered for repairs, there is a possibility of negative impact on the water’s habitat.

Water levels will be brought down about 2.5 metres for between two and three weeks to allow repairs on Lock 19. The drawdown began on Friday and will lower the stretch between Lakefield and Peterborough.

By yesterday afternoon, Sara Atkins, spokeswoman for Trent- Severn Waterway, said the drawdown was going as planned and had already been lowered about 2.13 metres.

“It looks bad because it’s such a shallow extension from the shoreline out,” she said.

Tom Whillans, a professor in the environmental and resource science program at Trent University, said problems could arise if the temperature drops significantly.

As the water level drops, frogs and turtles that live in the area would bury themselves in the mud for warmth, but if the ground freezes, the frogs and turtles could freeze too, Whillans said.

“If ice isn’t going to form, animals in the mud will be OK,” he said.

A drop in temperature and water level could impact the plants along the waterway also, especially if they get stuck in ice.

For fish, a lower volume of water could mean decreased oxygen levels caused by decomposition of organic materials, Whillans said.

“The fish will migrate out, though the odd one may be stranded.”

For other species such as insects or snails their survival will depend on how quickly they can migrate and how quickly water levels drop and how cold it gets.

“There’s no way they can survive being frozen solid,” he said.

Beavers and muskrats who have built lodges along the waterway could also be at risk, if the water is dropped below the entryway to their huts, Whillans said.

Not being able to enter their dwelling puts those animals at risk for predators such as dogs or coyotes.

“If you strand them, they’re in big trouble,” he said.

As water levels are dropped, Whillans is concerned overall about what impact a reduced water flow and possible drastic change in temperatures would have.

“If water and air temperatures stayed about what it is now there wouldn’t have too much of a problem.”

On Friday, officials at the Trent-Severn Waterway toldThe Examinerthe plan is to draw the water slowly, along the same rate as normal fall rates, to protect the wildlife.

The water is being brought down because of emergency repairs required on Lock 19, just south of Little Lake.