Corp Water Management Release

OMAHA – Runoff into the Missouri River reservoir systems remains above normal, the first time in nearly a decade.

The runoff was 123 percent of normal above Sioux City, ranging from 86 percent in the river reach above Fort Peck reservoir in Montana to 240 percent for the Sioux City reach.

At the reservoir storage check on July 1, there was enough water in the reservoirs to meet nearly all the needs of both upstream and downstream users. The navigation season length and service levels for the remainder of the year were returned to full service levels. Both Garrison and Oahe reservoirs are in their flood control pools. Only Fort Peck has not yet refilled. It is about 11 feet higher than last year at this time, but still 12 feet below its desired level.

“It is a relief to see a full river and full reservoirs after so much drought,” said Jody Farhat, Chief of the Water Management office here. “The people in the Missouri basin have suffered as result of so many years of extraordinarily low snow and rain.”

The current forecast for runoff is 32.8 MAF, 132 percent of average. If the forecast verifies, the level of Fort Peck will peak near 2221 feet by the end of the year. Garrison peaked at 1842.4 feet in late July. Oahe crested near 1614 feet in June. Storage peaked in the system of reservoirs at 57.9 MAF last month. The last time it was at this level was in December 1999.

Flow support for the commercial navigation season will end Nov. 30 at the mouth, just north of St. Louis. Releases from Gavins Point Dam will be adjusted as necessary to meet full service target flows of 31,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) at Sioux City and Omaha, 37,000 cfs at Nebraska City and 41,000 cfs at Kansas City.

A series of public meetings will be conducted in October to review and comment on the draft 2009-2010 Annual Operating Plan. There will be presentations on this year’s operation of the dams and reservoirs and what is planned for next year. There will be opportunities to comment on the draft plan and ask questions about current and future operations. The schedule is:

Oct 5 Nebraska City, Neb. 7 p.m. Lewis & Clark Center, 100 Valmont Drive
Oct 6 Kansas City, Mo. 1 p.m. Embassy Suites, 7460 NW Tiffany Springs Pkwy
Oct 6 Jefferson City, Mo. 7 p.m. Capitol Plaza, 415 McCarty St.
Oct 7 Fort Peck, Mont. 1 p.m. Fort Peck Interpretative Center
Oct 7 Bismarck, N.D. 7 p.m. Kelly Inn, 1800 N. 12th
Oct 8 Fort Pierre, S.D. 11 a.m. AmericInn Hotel, 312 Island Drive

Gavins Point releases averaged 26,500 cfs in July. The long-term average is 32,300 cfs. Releases will average 30,000 cfs in August.

Fort Randall releases averaged 24,400 cfs in July. They will be adjusted this month as necessary to maintain Gavins Point reservoir near its desired elevation. Fort Randall reservoir remained essentially level in July and will also in August, ending near elevation 1355.2 feet.

Big Bend reservoir will remain in its normal range of 1420 to 1421 feet. Releases will be adjusted to meet hydropower needs.

Oahe reservoir peaked near elevation 1614 feet on June 9. Releases in July averaged 23,600 cfs and will average 28,500 cfs in August to provide downstream flow support. The reservoir ended July at elevation 1612.4 feet, nearly 5 feet into the flood pool. The reservoir is beginning its annual drawdown to position it to capture next year’s spring runoff. It will fall about 2.7 feet in August, ending the month near elevation 1609.7 feet. This is 8.1 feet above its normal elevation for this time of the year. The reservoir is currently 18.5 feet higher than it was last year at this time.
Garrison reservoir rose 3.5 feet in July, ending at elevation 1842.2 feet. Releases averaged 15,700 cfs during the month, compared to the long-term average of 24,300 cfs. The reservoir is expected to fall less than half a foot in August, ending at 1841.9 feet, more than 4 feet above normal. It is currently 4.7 feet into its flood pool and 16.6 feet higher than last year at this time.

Fort Peck reservoir rose nearly a foot in July, ending at elevation 2220.5 feet msl. Releases averaged 6,500 cfs, compared to the long-term average of 10,100 cfs. They will average 6,500 cfs this month. The reservoir will fall about foot in August, ending at elevation 2219.5 feet, 12.7 feet below normal. It is currently nearly 10.5 feet higher than last year at this time.

The six main stem power plants generated 747 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity in July, only 78 percent of normal because of reduced releases from the dams. This is significantly higher than the last two years when generation was less than half of normal. Total energy production for 2009 is forecast to total 7 billion kWh, compared to the average of 10 billion kWh.

View daily and forecasted reservoir and river information on the Water Management section of the Northwestern Division homepage at  http://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil.