Northwestern Division / Media / News Releases

News Releases

  • Oahe and Big Bend Dams supporting temporary power needs

    Beginning today, releases from Oahe and Big Bend Dams in South Dakota will be increased from a daily average of about 15,000 cfs to about 36,000 cfs, downstream conditions permitting. These releases are aimed at providing additional power generation during a winter storm moving across the country over the weekend. "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Northwestern Division is working with the Western Area Power Administration much like last February," said John Remus, Chief of the Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. These actions will not effects the overall system storage, and will not change the System releases from Gavins Point Dam. We do not expect these release changes to remain in effect for more than 24 hours.

  • Below average runoff forecast for the upper Missouri River Basin in 2022

    The updated 2022 calendar year runoff forecast for the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa, continues to be below average.  “Despite January’s runoff being slightly above average, we expect 2022 runoff to remain 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.”

  • Missouri River Committee seeks input on charter amendments

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Northwestern Division, on behalf of the Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee, referred to at MRRIC, seeks input to proposed amendments to its charter. The Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee reached tentative consensus on the following proposed amendment to its Charter, originally approved on July 1, 2008. The draft amendments were posted to the MRRIC website on Jan. 12, 2022. Comments must be submitted not later than Feb. 12, 2022.

  • Dry Conditions expected to persist for the Missouri River Basin

    The 2021 calendar year runoff summation for the Missouri River basin above Sioux City, Iowa was 15.2 million acre-feet, 59% of average. The ongoing drought shows no relief in sight and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is predicting runoff into the mainstem reservoir system will remain below normal. This was the 10th lowest annual runoff for the Missouri River Basin in 123 years of record-keeping.

  • Gavins Point Dam releases reduced to winter release rate

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began reducing the Gavins Point releases to the winter release rate on Nov. 23, marking the end of flow support for the 2021 Missouri River navigation season. “Releases from Gavins Point Dam are being reduced to the winter release of 12,000 cubic feet per second,” said John Remus, Chief of the Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “Releases from Gavins Point are currently 13,000 cfs and we will slowly reduce releases to 12,000 by December 8. We will closely monitor river conditions, and releases will be adjusted this winter as needed to lessen the impacts of river ice formation on stages in the lower river.”

  • Record of Decision signed for Fort Peck Dam Environmental Impact Statement

    Col. Geoff Van Epps, Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Northwestern Division, signed a Record of Decision for the Fort Peck Dam test releases Environmental Impact Statement on Nov. 12. “We are committed to conducting the test in a manner that ensures the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can continue to serve all eight authorized purposes of the Missouri River Mainstem system.” said Van Epps. “This decision serves to allow the Corps to conduct a test, when conditions are favorable, to determine whether actions at Fort Peck Dam can be taken that would promote pallid sturgeon growth and survival before they reach the headwaters of Lake Sakakawea,”

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