News Releases

Gavins Point releases to remain steady through August

Missouri River Water Management Division
Published Aug. 6, 2020
The Missouri River Water Management office releases a report at the beginning of each month to the public documenting the monthly river forecast and release schedule. The Missouri River Water Management Division is part of the Northwestern Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is located in Omaha, Nebraska.

The Missouri River Water Management office releases a report at the beginning of each month to the public documenting the monthly river forecast and release schedule. The Missouri River Water Management Division is part of the Northwestern Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is located in Omaha, Nebraska.

Below-normal precipitation in Montana and Wyoming during July resulted in slightly below-average July runoff in the upper Basin. The 2020 calendar year upper basin runoff forecast, updated on August 3, is 30.9 million acre-feet (MAF), 120% of average. Average annual runoff for the upper basin is 25.8 MAF.

“Reservoir inflows in July have been declining due to the warmer and drier conditions in the upper Basin. The 2020 calendar year runoff forecast has been reduced slightly, due to this declining inflow in July; however, the runoff forecast still remains above average due to wet soil conditions in North Dakota and South Dakota, and the increased long term chance for precipitation indicated by the National Weather Service’s climate outlook,” said John Remus, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “We plan to maintain Gavins Point Dam releases at 30,000 cfs through August,” Remus added.

As of August 5 the total volume of water stored in the System was 61.5 MAF, occupying 5.4 MAF of the System’s 16.3-MAF flood control zone. System storage peaked at 61.8 MAF on July 16, and is forecast to continue to decline through the fall and winter so all 16.3 MAF of flood control storage is available prior to the start of the 2021 runoff season.

Soils continue to dry out in the upper Missouri River Basin due to below-normal precipitation and warmer-than-normal temperatures in Montana and Wyoming. Drought conditions, based on the National Drought Mitigation Center Drought Monitor, have intensified in areas of both the upper Basin and the lower Basin.

Navigation

The July 1 System storage check indicated flow support for the second half of the navigation season would be at least at the full service level for a full-length season. Full service flow support is designed to provide a 9-feet deep by 300-foot wide navigation channel from Sioux City, Iowa to the mouth of the river near St. Louis, Missouri. Flow support is normally provided for an 8-month season from April 1 through December 1 at the mouth.

Fort Peck Release Rate

Due to continued hydropower unit testing and the lower runoff forecast for the reservoir basin above Fort Peck, the release rate from Fort Peck will remain at 9,000 cfs in August.

Winter Release Rate

The winter release rate is determined based on the Sept. 1 System storage. Per the August 1st monthly studies and the expected Sept. 1 System storage, winter releases from Gavins Point Dam will be at least 17,000 cfs.

Mountain Snowpack

The mountain snowpack in the reaches above Fort Peck and from Fort Peck to Garrison melted by early July. The mountain snowpack peaked in both reaches: on April 16 in the Fort Peck reach at 109% of average and on April 19 in the Fort Peck to Garrison reach at 112% of average. The mountain snowpack graphics can be viewed here: https://go.usa.gov/xE6wT.

Weekly updates on basin conditions, reservoir levels and other topics of interest can be viewed here: https://go.usa.gov/xE6wa.

Monthly Water Management Conference Calls

Water management calls include an update from the National Weather Service’s Missouri Basin River Forecast Center, and an update on the Missouri River mainstem reservoir system operations. The last scheduled call for 2020 was held on Thursday, June 4. These monthly calls will resume in January 2021. All calls are recorded in their entirety and are available to the public on the Defense Video and Imagery Distribution System at www.dvidshub.net/unit/usace-nwd.

2019 Summary of Actual Regulation

The Summary of Actual 2019 Regulation of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System Summary is available here: https://go.usa.gov/xwWTY. This document contains a summary of the actual regulation of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System for the 2019 calendar year.

Reservoir Forecasts:

  • Gavins Point Dam
    • Average releases past month – 30,600 cfs
    • Current release rate – 30,000 cfs (as of August 1)
    • Forecast release rate – 30,000 cfs (month of August)
    • End-of-July reservoir level – 1207.4 feet
    • Forecast end-of-August reservoir level – 1206.5 feet
    • Notes: Releases may be adjusted as necessary to offset tributary flows from heavy rain events.
       
  • Fort Randall Dam
    • Average releases past month – 27,200 cfs
    • End-of-July reservoir level – 1357.9 feet
    • Forecast end-of-August reservoir level – 1355.6 feet
    • Notes: Releases will be adjusted as necessary to maintain the desired reservoir elevation at Gavins Point.
       
  • Big Bend Dam
    • Average releases past month – 27,900 cfs
    • Forecast average release rate – 23,600 cfs
    • Forecast reservoir level – 1420.9 feet
       
  • Oahe Dam
    • Average releases past month – 27,300 cfs
    • Forecast average release rate – 24,500 cfs
    • End-of-July reservoir level – 1612.3 feet
    • Forecast end-of-August reservoir level – 1612.5 feet
       
  • Garrison Dam
    • Average releases past month – 28,000 cfs
    • Current release rate – 28,000 cfs
    • Forecast average release rate – reduce to 26,000 cfs on 9 August
    • End-of-July reservoir level – 1843.5 feet
    • Forecast end-of-August reservoir level – 1841.6 feet
       
  • Fort Peck Dam
    • Average releases past month – 10,500 cfs
    • Current release rate – 8,500 cfs
    • Forecast average release rate – 9,000 cfs
    • End-of-July reservoir level – 2240.1 feet
    • Forecast end-of-August reservoir level – 2239.8 feet

The forecast reservoir releases and elevations discussed above are not definitive. Additional precipitation, lack of precipitation or other circumstances could cause adjustments to the reservoir release rates.

Hydropower:

The six mainstem power plants generated 977 million kWh of electricity in July. Typical energy generation for July is 961 million kWh. The power plants are projected to generate 10.4 billion kWh of electricity this year, compared to the long-term average of 9.4 billion kWh.

To view the detailed three-week release forecast for the mainstem dams, go to http://go.usa.gov/xVgWr.

MISSOURI RIVER MAINSTEM RESERVOIR DATA

 

Pool Elevation
(feet above mean sea level)

Water in Storage
(1,000 acre-feet)

 

On July 31

Change in July

On July 31

% of 1967-2019 Average

Change in July

Fort Peck

2240.1

+0.5

16,116

111

+112

Garrison

1843.5

-0.3

19,680

110

-6

Oahe

1612.3

+0.3

20,196

114

+133

Big Bend

1420.2

-0.6

1,649

97

-19

Fort Randall

1357.9

+2.0

3,640

109

+157

Gavins Point

1207.4

+1.3

359

92

+29

 

 

Total

61,640

111

+406

 

WATER RELEASES AND ENERGY GENERATION FOR JULY

 

Average Release in 1,000 cfs

Releases in 1,000 acre-feet

Generation in Million kWh

Fort Peck

10.5

645

109

Garrison

28.0

1,721

272

Oahe

27.3

1,676

261

Big Bend

27.9

1,715

93

Fort Randall

27.2

1,672

180

Gavins Point

30.6

1,882

61

 

 

Total

976


Contact
Eileen Williamson
402-779-1448
eileen.l.williamson@usace.army.mil

Release no. 20-121