News Releases

Corps increases releases from Gavins Point Dam

Missouri River Water Management Division
Published Jan. 7, 2016
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.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is increasing releases from Gavins Point Dam and other mainstem Missouri River dams to continue preparing their reservoirs for the upcoming runoff season.

“Gavins Point releases will be stepped up in early January from 17,000 to 24,000 cubic feet per second,” said Jody Farhat, chief of the Corps’ Missouri River Water Management Division.

The total volume of water stored in the Mainstem Reservoir System is currently 56.8 million acre feet, which includes 0.7 MAF of the 16.3 MAF allocated for flood storage. System storage declined 0.3 MAF during December.

“Due to higher than expected December runoff that will probably continue into January and February, we are increasing releases to complete the evacuation of water stored in the annual flood control pool. That will ensure that the full flood storage is available to start the 2016 runoff season,” said Farhat.

Releases from Gavins Point and other dams may be further adjusted during January and February depending on observed runoff, said Farhat.

During the winter, the Corps will closely monitor ice conditions below Garrison, Oahe and Gavins Point dams and make reservoir regulation adjustments to lessen the impact of river ice formation.

Cold temperatures typically form river ice on the Missouri River and its tributaries above Sioux City; however, warmer than normal temperatures in December inhibited ice development and runoff was 155 percent of average. Mountain snowpack in the reach above Fort Peck Dam is about average. Mountain snowpack in the reach between Fort Peck and Garrison dams is about 80 percent of average.

Based on the current soil moisture and snowpack conditions, 2016 runoff in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City is forecast to be 23.8 MAF, 94 percent of average. Annual runoff in 2015 was 25.8 MAF, 102 percent of average.

Flow support for Missouri River navigation will likely be at full service levels for the first half of the 2016 season. The actual service level will be based on the total volume of water stored in the reservoir system on March 15, in accordance with guidelines in the Master Manual. Flow support for the second half of the navigation season, as well as the navigation season length, will be based on the actual July 1 system storage.

The Corps will continue to monitor basin conditions and mountain and plains snow accumulation, and fine tune the regulation of the reservoir system based on the most up-to-date information.

Final 2015–2016 Annual Operating Plan released

After reviewing comments received on the draft, the Missouri River Basin Water Management Division developed and released the Final Annual Operating Plan for the Missouri River Basin for 2015-2016. The plan is posted at https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Public-Meetings/

Monthly water management conference calls begin for 2016

The Corps will host its first conference call of 2016 on Thursday, Jan. 7, to inform basin stakeholders about current weather and runoff forecasts and the planned operation of the reservoir system in the coming months. Presentation materials will be available via webinar. The call is intended for Congressional delegations; Tribes; state, county and local government officials; and the media. It will be recorded in its entirety and made available on the Defense Video and Imagery Distribution System at https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/MRWM-News/.

Reservoir Forecasts

Gavins Point Dam releases averaged 17,000 cfs in December. Releases were increased beginningJan. 5. The reservoir behind Gavins Point Dam ended December at elevation 1207.8 feet. It will remain near its normal seasonal pool elevation of 1207.5 feet in January.

Fort Randall Dam releases averaged 15,000 cfs in December. Releases will range from 15,000 cfs to 23,000 cfs during January as necessary to maintain the elevation at Gavins Point. The reservoir ended December at elevation 1339.8 feet, up 0.5 foot during the month. The reservoir is expected to rise more than 5 feet during January. The refill of the reservoir is designed to increase winter hydropower generation at Oahe and Big Bend.

Big Bend Dam releases averaged 14,100 cfs during the month of December. Releases are expected to average 27,000 cfs this month. The reservoir will remain near its normal elevation of 1420.0 feet during January.

Oahe Dam releases averaged 14,600 cfs during the month of December. Releases are expected to average 26,800 cfs this month. The reservoir ended December at elevation 1609.2 feet, down 0.2 foot during the month. The reservoir level is expected to decline more than 1 foot during the month of January.

Garrison Dam releases averaged 14,600 cfs in December. Releases will remain near 15,000 cfs to prepare for the river freeze-in. As ice conditions permit, releases will be gradually increased to the winter release rate of 23,000 cfs. Garrison ended December at elevation 1840.0 feet, down 0.7 foot from the end of November. The reservoir level is expected to decline about 1 foot during January.

Fort Peck Dam releases averaged 5,500 cfs in December. Releases were increased to 7,000 cfs on Jan. 6. The reservoir dropped 0.5 foot during December, ending the month at elevation 2234.3 feet. The reservoir level is forecast to decline less than a foot during December.

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.

The six mainstem power plants generated 526 million kilowatt hours of electricity in December. Typical energy generation for the month of December is 687 million kWh. The 2014 total power generation was 8.5 billion kWh. The power plants are projected to generate 9.6 billion kWh of electricity this year, compared to the normal of 10 billion kWh.

To view the detailed three-week release forecast for the mainstem dams, go to: https://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/reports/twregfcast.pdf 

Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir Data.

 

Pool Elevation

(feet above mean sea level)

Water in Storage - 1,000 acre-feet

 

On December 31

Change in December

On December 31

% of 1967-2014 Average

Change in December

Fort Peck

2234.3

-0.5

14,854

105

-51

Garrison

1840.0

-0.7

18,529

108

-219

Oahe

1609.2

-0.2

19,215

116

-55

Big Bend

1420.2

-0.4

1,644

96

-25

Fort Randall

1339.8

+0.5

2,317

89

+25

Gavins Point

1207.8

+0.3

368

89

+5

 

 

 Total

56,927

108

-318

 

Water releases and energy generation for December

 

Average Release in 1,000 cfs

Releases in 1,000 acre-feet

Generation in Million kWh

Fort Peck

5.4

330

53

Garrison

14.6

896

138

Oahe

14.6

899

142

Big Bend

14.1

865

55

Fort Randall

15.0

923

88

Gavins Point

17.0

1,046

49

 

 

Total

526

 


Contact
Scott Clemans
503-808-3710
scott.f.clemans@usace.army.mil

Release no. 160107-001