News Releases

  • Mississippi River Commission and Corps of Engineers tour Missouri River

    Leaders from The Mississippi River Commission along with leaders from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers toured the Missouri River Mar. 29 – Apr. 1. Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon, chief of engineers and commanding general, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Brig. Gen. D. Peter Hemlinger, commander, Northwestern Division, Col. William Hannan Jr., commander, Kansas City District and Col. Mark Himes, commander, Omaha District, met with partners and stakeholders and visited sites along the river.
  • 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.”
  • Gavins Point releases increased slightly ahead of colder temperatures

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers increased Gavins Point releases from 17,000 cubic feet per second to 19,000 cfs at noon Friday. The National Weather Service’s forecast indicates the lower Missouri River basin will experience extreme cold temperatures for the next 7-10 days. The much colder temperatures have the potential to cause or exacerbate ice formation on tributaries and the mainstem of the lower Missouri River.
  • 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.”
  • USACE Publishes Policy Update for Inundation Maps and the National Inventory of Dams

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers published Engineer Circular 1110-2-6075, “Inundation Maps and Emergency Action Plans and Incident Management for Dams and Levee Systems,” in October. This update allows for the use and public dissemination of inundation maps in emergency action plans (EAP) and the National Inventory of Dams (NID), It also provides the dam safety community access to critical information about residual flood risks from USACE dams and levees.