SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Lake Oahe's near-record-low water levels are becoming a source of concern for many.

The lake sits at around 1,578.8 feet above sea level. That is about 3 inches above the record low reached earlier this month.

The lake is expected to rise about a foot by February. But if the lake falls, it could cause problems with drinking water, fishing in the summer and the disposition of American Indian remains.

The Standing Rock Indian Reservation, which straddles the South Dakota-North Dakota border, may be closest to experiencing problems.

In November, its drinking water intake near Fort Yates, N.D., had to be shut down because of silt. Flow was eventually restored, but now the intake near Wakpala is in jeopardy from another threat. If the ice thickens by only a few feet, it, too, will be clogged, said Byron Olson, the tribal archaeologist.

"What we have right out there is the Missouri River basically in its original bed and huge frozen mud flats," Olson said.

And when summer comes, burial sites will be vulnerable to exposure from low water.

"Human remains are about the hottest issue you can have, and there is a real concern that these things get stolen," Olson said. "Crazy people go out and try to collect this stuff."

But the tribe has a good relationship with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which routinely excavates exposed remains and returns them to the tribe, Olson said.

Most South Dakotans are more likely to be affected by the low river as they try to catch walleye, which will be harder to find if boat ramps are stranded.

The state Department of Game, Fish and Parks has contractors trying to prevent that.

"They're working in January, doing what they can to extend ramps and put them in as good of condition as possible," said Bob Schneider of the GF&P. "When ice comes out in spring, we should have a minimum of 12 to 15 ramps in service on Lake Oahe."

But that may not be enough to bring business to resorts and fishing guides.

"We are experiencing people that are really cautious about making reservations," said Denny Palmer, a guide in Mobridge.

Lake levels also help determine whether there are any fish to catch, especially in spring, when they need steady or rising water to spawn.

That depends partly on snowfall. Currently, there is very little. It also depends on the Corps of Engineers, which controls the flow from the six Missouri River dams.

But corps spokesman Paul Johnston said the corps' hands are tied by a recent decision from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

That agency set the flow levels needed to save the endangered pallid sturgeon. Even if holding water in the reservoirs during drought would help sport fish, the corps will not be able to do so if it conflicts with those flows, Johnston said.