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Tag: runoff
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  • Missouri River navigation support; full-length season, reduced service levels

    The Missouri River Water Management Division will reduce navigation flow support beginning today for the second half of the navigation flow support season.  “We continue to monitor conditions throughout the basin and make adjustments as necessary. We will provide a full update for key stakeholders and the media on our regular July 8 call,” said John Remus, chief of the Missouri River Water Management Division. 
  • Upper basin runoff forecast continues to be below average

    After our June communication materials were sent, we received a few calls from the public seeking clarification on planned releases from Gavins Point Dam. The press release has been updated to highlight this information. Below-average precipitation and dry soil conditions persist in the upper Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, IA (upper Basin). The updated 2021 upper Basin runoff forecast is 17.9 million acre-feet (MAF), 69% of average. If realized, this runoff amount would be in the 22nd driest year in the upper Basin since 1898.
  • Wintertime Snow and Precipitation Conditions in the Willow Creek Watershed above Ririe Dam, Idaho

    ABSTRACT:  The Ririe Dam and Reservoir project is located on Willow Creek near Idaho Falls, Idaho, and is important for flood risk reduction and water supply. The current operating criteria is based on fully storing a large winter runoff event. These winter runoff events are generally from large storm events, termed atmospheric rivers, which produce substantial precipitation. In addition to the precipitation, enhanced runoff is produced due to frozen soil and snowmelt. However, the need for additional water supply by local stakeholders has prompted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to seek to better understand the current level of flood risk reduction provided by Ririe Dam and Reservoir.  Flood risk analysis using hydrologic modeling software requires quantification of the probability for all of the hydrometeorologic inputs. Our study develops the precipitation, SWE, and frozen ground probabilities that are required for the hydrologic modeling necessary to quantify the current winter flood risk.
  • Drought conditions driving lowered runoff forecast

    Very dry conditions in April resulted in very low runoff in the upper Missouri River Basin. The upper Basin runoff was 44% of average, which was the 9th driest April in 123 years of record. The updated 2021 upper Basin runoff forecast is 17.8 million acre-feet (MAF), 69% of average, which, if realized, would rank as the 22nd lowest calendar year runoff volume.
  • 2021 runoff forecast remains below average; Virtual spring public meetings April 6

    Reservoir inflows in the Missouri River basin above Sioux City, Iowa (upper Basin) were well-below average in March. The updated 2021 upper Basin runoff forecast is 21.3 million acre-feet (MAF), 83% of average.
  • Missouri River virtual spring public meetings to be held April 6

    The Missouri River Water Management Division invites the public to participate in one of two virtual public meetings scheduled for April 6. The meetings will take place at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. central time. Details for connecting to each webinar is posted to our website.
  • 2021 runoff forecast remains below average; Virtual spring public meeting set for April 6

    *** Updated to add links to schedule for virtual public meetings *** Reservoir inflows in the Missouri River basin above Sioux City, Iowa (upper Basin) were well-below average in February. The 2021 calendar year runoff forecast for the upper basin remains below average. “Very cold February temperatures in the upper Basin locked up tributaries in ice and reduced inflows to the System reservoirs,” said John Remus, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “Mountain snowpack continues to accumulate in the Rocky Mountains; however, plains snowpack is well-below seasonal averages and soil moisture continues to be much drier than normal.”
  • Below average runoff forecast for the upper Missouri River Basin in 2021

    **Updated to correct errors in hydropower table.** The updated 2021 calendar year runoff forecast for the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa, continues to be below average. “Despite runoff being slightly above average in January, we expect 2021 runoff to be below average,” said John Remus, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “Both plains snowpack and mountain snowpack continue to lag behind seasonal averages, and soil moisture continues to be much drier-than-normal.”
  • Stormwater Management and Optimization Toolbox

    Abstract: As stormwater regulations for hydrologic and water quality control become increasingly stringent, Department of Defense (DoD) facilities are faced with the daunting task of complying with multiple laws and regulations. This often requires facilities to plan, design, and implement structural best management practices (BMPs) to capture, filter, and/or infiltrate runoff—requirements that can be complicated, contradictory, and difficult to plan. This project demonstrated the Stormwater Management Optimization Toolbox (SMOT), a spreadsheet-based tool that effectively analyzes and plans for compliance to the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 pre-hydrologic conditions through BMP implementation, resulting in potential cost savings by reducing BMP sizes while simultaneously achieving compliance with multiple objectives. SMOT identifies the most cost-effective modeling method based on an installation’s local conditions (soils, rainfall patterns, drainage network, and regulatory requirements). The work first demonstrated that the Model Selection Tool (MST) recommendation accurately results in the minimum BMP cost for 45 facilities of widely varying climatic and regional conditions, and then demonstrated SMOT at two facilities.
  • Missouri River reservoir system prepared for 2021 runoff season

    The full flood control capacity of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System is available for the 2021 runoff season. “All 2020 flood water stored in the annual flood control zone has been evacuated as of December 21,” said John Remus, chief of the U.S Army Corps of Engineers’, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “The entire flood control capacity of the Mainstem System is available to capture and manage 2021 runoff, reducing flood risk while providing support to the other authorized project purposes.”