Releases from Buford Dam are happening 24 hours a day following heavy rainfall in the region of Lake Lanier and its watershed. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers needs to release water from the dam because six to eight inches of rain during the past 48 hours pushed lake levels above 1,073 feet above sea level, E. Patrick Robbins, Mobile District spokesman, said in an email. Summer full pool is 1,071 feet.