Dry conditions last month (April) resulted in very low runoff into the upper Missouri River Basin.
Mike Swenson with the US Army Corps of Engineers says the upper Basin runoff was 44% of average, which was the 9th driest April in 123 years of record keeping.
Swenson says they use two main tools to estimate runoff.
Swenson says reservoir levels at the “big 3” dams– Oahe, Garrison and Fort Peck– are all below their flood control pools.
Swenson says the updated 2021 upper Basin runoff forecast is 69% of average (17.8 million acre-feet), which, if realized, would rank as the 22nd lowest calendar year runoff volume.
To view the detailed three-week release forecast for the mainstem dams, go to https://go.usa.gov/xARQB.
The Missouri Basin Web App provides links to these reports and others that are updated more frequently.
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