The Beltzville Dam and Reservoir, located 4 miles east of Lehighton, is accepting water steadily according to a report of the Army Corps of Engineers. The project, constructed in the scenic Big Creek Valley at a cost of $18-million, began impounding water at a rate of 1½ feet a day.

Barney Schwartz, resident engineer on the project, said the reservoir is expected to reach its normal pool depth of 128 feet on June 8. A pool 31 feet deep is already being held by the 170-foot high breast as a result of the near-2-inch rainfall over the weekend.

The reservoir will contain 8.8 billion gallons of water at normal depth and will be capable of holding another 4.2 billion gallons for long term storage.