Laserfiche WebLink
;,..; News Release <br />US Army Corps 12565 West Center Road Contact: Paul Johnston <br />of Engineers Omaha, Nebraska 68144-3869 (402) 697-2552 <br />Northwesterri Division Larry Cieslik <br />Public Affairs Office (402) 697-2675 <br />Phone: (402) 697-2552 Date: December 7, 2005 <br />Fax: (402) 697-2554 <br />IXater Management Monthly News Release <br />OMAHA - Drought maintains its grip on most of the upper Missouri River basin, <br />despite several significant snow storms in November. With extraordinary conservation <br />measures continuing, storage in the big main stem reservoirs remained essentially steady <br />tlirough November. <br />Runoff above Sioux City, Iowa, was 1.1 million acre feet (MAF), 104 percent of <br />normal. "Runoff is normally low this time of the year, so small increases can result in large <br />percentage changes," said Larry Cieslik, Ghief of the Water Management office in Omaha. <br />"We held releases from the reservoir system to historic low levels in October, but <br />downstream tributary inflow fell off in November, requiring increases to meet the needs of <br />water supply intakes on the lower river. <br />The current runoff forecast for 2005 is 20.3 MAF, 81 percent of normal, compared <br />to the normal of 25.2 MAF. <br />System storage ended November at 36:4 MAF, an increase from the 35.7 MAF <br />rf;corded last year at this time. The amounf of water currently stored in the reservoirs is <br />18.9 MAF below average. <br />The draft 2005-2006 Annual Operating Plan was released Oct. 20 for public <br />re:view and comment. It proposes two "spring pulses" to satisfy the requirements of the <br />Endangered Species Act, provided there is sufficient water in the reservoir system. To <br />conserve water, the pulses would be delayed until 2007 if there were not at least <br />36:5 MAF of storage on March 1 and-May 1. Increased reservoir levels are dependent on <br />rain this fall and snow on the plains and in the mountains this winter. <br />The draft plan maintains the same level of "flood control constraints" currently in <br />the Master Water Control Manual. These are the flows that act as triggers for reducing <br />releases from Gavins Point during higher downstream river levels.