ERNE, LOUGH

Irish Loch irne lake in Fermanagh district (established 1973), formerly County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is 40 miles (64 km) long and has an average width of 5 miles (8 km) and a maximum depth of 200 feet (60 m). The lake consists of the shallow Upper Lough Erne, 12 miles (19 km) long, and Lower Lough Erne, 18 miles (29 km) long, linked by a 10-mile (16-kilometre) strait that is part of the River Erne. The lakes lie in an almost level carboniferous limestone plateau. Although formed by the solution of limestone, their basins are blanketed with heavy boulder clays. The level in the upper lake is subject to fluctuations because of the constricted flow produced by these glacial features. Numerous islands dot the lakes and provide recreation facilities. A flood-relief project, completed in 1959, was designed to control the water supply to hydroelectric power stations at Ballyshannon and Cliff. As a result, about 29,000 acres (11,700 hectares) of land around the upper lake were freed from summer flooding and excessive waterlogging.