September 2021 precipitation was below average in the Missouri River Basin.
The US Army Corps of Engineers says September runoff above Sioux City, Iowa, was 67% of the long-term average (was 0.8 million acre-feet). According to the Drought Mitigation Center, approximately 88% of the Missouri River basin is currently experiencing some form of abnormally dry conditions or drought, which is a 6% increase from the end of August.
John Remus is the chief of the Corps’ Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. He says upper basin runoff was below average in September and is expected to stay low through the remainder of the calendar year. He says lower basin runoff has been below average as well.
The 2021 calendar year runoff forecast for the upper Basin, updated on Oct. 1, 2021, is 57% of average (14.8 MAF vs the average of 25.8 MAF). If realized, this runoff amount would be the 10th lowest runoff in 123 years of record-keeping.
Gavins Point Dam releases will be reduced to winter levels beginning around Nov. 22, 2021. The winter release rate is determined by the System’s storage on Sept. 1.
In mid-September, the USACE posted the draft 2021-2022 Annual Operating Plan on its website at: https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Public-Meetings/. The comment period on the draft AOP will close on Nov. 24, 2021.
The US Army Corps will hold its annual fall public meetings the week of Oct. 25-28, 2021. The South Dakota meeting will be Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2021, at 10am CT at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center (210 Verendrye Drive) in Fort Pierre.
The in-person meetings will adhere to the following COVID-19 meeting guidelines in accordance with the Department of Defense (but subject to change):
-
Meeting attendance, including presenters cannot exceed 50.
-
All attendees will be required to wear masks covering both the mouth and nose.
Do not attend if:
-
You are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 including fever or cough,
-
You are awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test,
-
You have received a positive COVID-19 test within the last 14 days, or
-
You have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 within the last 14 days.
If you cannot attend, a meeting recording will be posted online at: https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/MRWM-News/.
Questions may be submitted online at: https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Questions/.
Comments