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Next phase of Fort Peck flow test delayed

Missouri River Water Management Division

Published June 11, 2024

National Weather Service graphic depicting flows on the Missouri River at Williston, N.D. the chart shows set stages of Action Stage at 20 feet, minor flood stage at 22 feet, morderate flood stage at 24 feet, and major flood stage at 26 feet. A blue line traces past and current gage readings, a purple line shows forecast stages.

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The National Weather Service has forecast increased flows on the Yellowstone River to reach the Missouri River at the Williston gage. The Williston gage is forecast to reach minor flood stage of 22.6 feet on Sat., June 15.

A map showing the Upper Missouri River Basin with pins denoting the locations of each Missouri River Mainstem Dam operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Northwestern Division. Text on the image provides a schedule for weekly calls to be held through the duration of the test flows.
Calls will be held cach Wednesday from April 24-July 17, 2024 at 1:00 PM Central Time. Weekly calls will be held through the duration of the Fort Peck Test Flows.
The calls will provide a report on: current releases, the previous week’s release rates, and operations for the
next week through the course of the test. The website for accessing the calls is https://usace1.webex.com/usace1/j.php?MTID=ma8b176ff7ce553ae5f1f645f3a8629a4

The link only works during an active call. For recordings of the call, users can visit www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/MRWM-News/

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Updates on the Fort Peck Test Flow will be held each Wednesday from April 24-July 17, 2024 at 1 p.m. Central Time. Weekly calls will be held through the duration of the Fort Peck Test Flows. Calls will report on: Current releases, Previous week’s release rates, and Operations for the next week through the course of the test. Calls can be accessed at: https://usace1.webex.com/usace1/j.php?MTID=ma8b176ff7ce553ae5f1f645f3a8629a4 Please note the link only works during active calls.

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OMAHA, Neb. --

The next round of increased flows from Fort Peck Dam for the scheduled flow test have been delayed.

The second peak from Fort Peck Dam was initially scheduled to begin tomorrow, June 13 but will be delayed until at least June 17.

“A stop protocol is in place should the Williston, North Dakota, gage on the Missouri River be forecast to reach 22.0 feet,” said John Remus, chief of the Missouri River Water Management Division for the Northwestern Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“We will delay the second increased release for the Fort Peck flow test to at least until June 17, at which time we will re-evaluate the river conditions. This should allow river stages at Williston to decline and the second peak to come in behind the higher flows from the Yellowstone River,” said Remus.

The Fort Peck flow test is part of the USACE’s compliance with the 2018 Biological Opinion and is intended to assess the potential benefits of alternative management scenarios for the benefit of the pallid sturgeon. The 2024 test began on April 26 and will be completed around Sept. 1.

The test includes two higher flow periods, in late April and June, with target flows at Wolf Point, Montana. The first peak in releases was completed in early May with peak flows of 18,000 cfs at Wolf Point, Montana. Releases were reduced to 10,000 cfs by May 10.

The second peak, which has been delayed to start no earlier than June 17, will have peak flows of 22,500 cfs. The test releases will not affect river stages below Gavins Point Dam.

Weekly virtual meetings during the flow test are taking place to update the public on test progress and planned operations. Information on accessing the public meetings can be found at https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Public-Meetings/Meetings. Calls will be held June 12, 19 and 26 at 1 p.m. Central (12 p.m. Mountain).

During the flow test a number of monitoring activities will be conducted to include fish monitoring, lidar and aerial photography, physical surveys, cultural resource surveys, and water quality sampling. Interested parties can also provide information through a web-based application that can be found at https://hydroviz.ca/fort-peck-feedback or Missouri.Water.Management@nwd02.usace.army.mil.