February runoff in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa, was 113% of average (1.3 million acre-feet).
Despite the above normal runoff in the Garrison, Oahe and Gavins Point reaches triggered by warm February temperatures, the overall 2026 runoff forecast for the upper Missouri River Basin still remains 80% of average (20.6 MAF).
John Remus, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Missouri River Basin Water Management Division, said mountain snowpack improved in February, but is still below average. He said soil moisture also remains low because of ongoing drought so continued water conservation measures will be required.
The six mainstem power plants generated 425 million kWh of electricity in February, 189 million kWh below February’s typical energy production (of 614 million kWh). Forecast generation for 2026 is 7.8 billion kWh compared to the long-term average of 9.3 billion kWh.
USACE continues to monitor basin and river conditions, including plains and mountain snow accumulation, and will adjust System regulation based on the most up-to-date information.
The detailed three-week release forecast for the mainstem dams is available at: https://go.mil/mr-3wk-fcast.
This information and more is also available using the USACE mobile app, https://go.mil/mr-webapp, which can be saved to your smart phone.
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