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  • Water managers monitor upper-elevation rain that could cause local flooding

    Pacific Northwest weather can be a conundrum. In 2026, many parts of the region struggled to build snowpack and saw minimal precipitation. However, even average snowpack combined with storm events can lead to elevated stream flows, as the Flathead Basin in western Montana saw this week.

  • Spring fish operations begin on Snake, Columbia rivers

    Spring fish passage operations began April 3 at federal dams on the lower Snake River and will begin April 10 on the lower Columbia River.

  • Federal water managers take precautions by adjusting water levels behind John Day dam as precipitation mounts

    Federal water managers at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) will adjust water levels behind John Day Dam (Lake Umatilla), in north-central Oregon, this week to prepare for another round of heavy precipitation in the Columbia River Basin. This will be the third atmospheric river storm event within the last two weeks.

  • Spillway gates at Gavins Point Dam closing

    Spillway operations at Gavins Point Dam are ending following recent heavy rains.At 8 a.m. today,

  • Litigation stay agreement increasing Columbia River spill, begins

    After an agreement to stay the Columbia River Basin litigation for up to 10 years, federal water managers will begin spilling more water over basin dams this spring than in past years. In the agreement, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has committed to spill more water over spillways instead of through turbines during its annual “spring spill” operations at dams on the lower Snake and Columbia rivers as well as expanding spill in the fall and early spring.

  • Missouri River fall meetings scheduled for December 13

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will host a public meeting in Poplar, Montana, Dec. 13 to share information about USACE’s operation of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System. Public meetings are held each spring and fall across the Missouri River Basin and provide an update on current year's runoff and reservoir operations, as well as planned operations for the next year's runoff season.

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