MINOT (AP) - Drought is causing a dire outlook for a popular fishing lake on the Souris River northwest of Minot.

Lake Darling could drop as low as 1,588 feet above sea level this summer, about 9 feet below normal and the lowest level since drought years in the early 1990s, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages two national wildlife refuges on the river.

The lowest recorded water level at Lake Darling occurred in May 1993 when the reservoir dropped to 1,588.7 feet.

Only about 7,000 acre feet of spring runoff into the lake is expected, compared to the long- term annual average of about 98,000 acre feet.

"If we don't see any relief from current drought conditions, it will affect the fishing public who use the lake," said Tom Pabian, manager of the Upper Souris National Wildlife Refuge, where Lake Darling is located. "Some boat ramps will become unusable and favorite fishing spots may not be accessible. Potential fish kills due to oxygen depletion are also a possibility."

The river crosses the U.S.-Canada border twice in North Dakota, making a loop through Minot in the north central part of the state.

Officials at Alameda Dam in Saskatchewan were expected to lower that reservoir to do maintenance, sending more water downstream.

"Now, the contractor took a look at it and decided to do the repairs at the current level," Pabian said. "In round numbers, that means the projection of what we were going to get is about half, or even less.

"I have not seen a coulee or a tributary run yet this year," he said. "Last month I used the word 'grim' to describe our water situation. That might be a best-case scenario now. It's going to be tough to try and satisfy everybody's needs without enough water to go around."

The earlier plan at Alameda Dam would have released enough water into the Souris to fulfill obligations to an irrigation district near Towner, maintain wetland habitat at J. Clark Salyer National Wildlife Refuge downstream and still meet water treaty rights with Canada. North Dakota is required to release a minimum of 6,069 acre feet of water back into Canada.

Now, interests all along the river have begun scrambling for ways to divide what little water is available.

"We're trying to save as much water as we can in Lake Darling. We are guardedly optimistic that Darling should be all right this summer," Pabian said.

If the fishery is harmed, it might not have long-term effects, he said.

"On the bright side, when Lake Darling filled after being so low in the early 1990s, the fisheries rebounded with a fury and the lake became a choice destination for literally thousands of anglers," Pabian said.