A cemetery was relocated, and the recreation areas of Bartlett Park and Porterville Beach were removed to facilitate the construction of the dam.

A 1,499-acre wildlife refuge (607 ha) protects a portion of the northwest shoreline and is considered to be one of the best bird-watching sites in Tulare County.

In the science fiction novel Lucifer's Hammer, written by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, fragments of a comet strike the Earth, causing massive tidal waves to destroy most of the planet's coastal cities.

Los Angeles is completely destroyed, and the collapse of dams throughout California causes the San Joaquin Valley to become an inland sea.

After the disasters subside, an enclave of civilization forms in the fictional "Silver Valley", located slightly east or northeast of Springville, just north of the Middle Fork of the Tule River.

[6] The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers temporarily lowered the amount of water in the lake between 2012 and 2014 while tests were conducted regarding seismic faults near the dam.