News Releases

  • Drought conditions worsen in upper Missouri River Basin

    The time for the Fort Peck meeting was updated to 11 a.m. Due to scheduling conflicts, the St. Louis meeting has been canceled. September precipitation was once again below average in the Missouri River Basin. September runoff in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa was 0.6 million acre-feet, 47% of the long-term average. Soil conditions in the upper Missouri River Basin continue to be very dry. According to the Drought Mitigation Center, over 90% of the Missouri River basin is currently experiencing some form of abnormally dry conditions or drought, which is almost a 20% increase from the end of August.
  • Geoff Van Epps promoted to brigadier general

    Geoff Van Epps was promoted to the rank of brigadier general today in a traditional military ceremony at the historic Gen. George C. Marshall House at the former Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, Washington. Major General Richard Heitkamp, deputy commanding general of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, hosted a long-standing traditional ceremony which is a public indication of the increased responsibility that the service member is about to assume. Photos from the ceremony will be released later today.
  • Fort Peck fall release reductions start

    Planned release reductions from Fort Peck Dam will begin the end of this week. The release schedule for Sept. 28 is 8,000 cubic feet per second and will be stepped down to 4,000 cfs by Oct. 2.
  • Fort Peck fall release reductions delayed

    Planned release reductions from Fort Peck Dam will be delayed until the end of September, due to the ongoing drought and recent extremely dry weather in eastern Montana.
  • Gavins Point Winter Releases Will be at Minimum Rates

    Drought conditions in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa, continued throughout the month of August. Per the Master Manual and the September 1 System storage check, winter releases from Gavins Point Dam will be 12,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), as part of the overall water conservation measures.
  • Missouri River Basin drought conditions persist

    While the Missouri River basin has seen improved runoff for two consecutive months, it is not enough to overcome the long-term drought persisting in much of the basin. July runoff in the Missouri River basin above Sioux City, Iowa was 3.2 million acre-feet, which is 98% of average and 0.7 MAF more than was forecast last month. This has led to an annual runoff forecast of 20.6 MAF, which is 80% of average and 0.6 MAF higher than last month’s forecast.