lake powell water level forecast 2022lake powell water level forecast 2022

Wednesday snow and wind will be heavy at times leading to difficult if not impossible travel. According to Jay Lund, vice director for the Center for Watershed Sciences and a professor at the University of California, the long-term average use in the lower Colorado River Basin exceeds the long-term flow of water, meaning the only solution is to "substantially reduce water use" in the basin. Today is day 151 of 365 for the Water Year 2023. View CFS Last 14 Measurements Lake Powell is down -1.03 feet over these measurements Averages for February 27th Last 10 February 27th's data records System emergencies occur fairly infrequently and typically require small responses from Glen Canyon Dam. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. A visual history of the water level of each of our Lake Powell trips over the past three years. google_ad_type = "text_image"; Sunlight brightens plateaus and southeast-facing slopes, casting shadows on the northern and western faces of the rugged landscape. Close Become a member Login My Account Logout Search for:Search News Education Health Coloradans Equity Sun Investigation Crime and Courts Culture Sports Jian Wang of Utahs Center for Colorado River Studies says that means the projections may be too optimistic. google_ad_channel ="2397569894"; Lake Powell was at 26% of capacity, 168 feet below its full elevation of 3,700 feet above sea level at . Additionally, there are possible inflow scenarios that would result in reservoir elevations falling outside the ranges indicated in these reports. It can store about five times the average annual flow. Newsweek reached out to the U.S. Geological Survey for comment. Releases from Glen Canyon Dam can also fluctuate beyond scheduled releases when called upon to respond to unscheduled power outages or power system emergencies. //-->, Printable Version As of Tuesday, February 28th, 2023 where elevation was 3521.04', Copyright Summit Technologies, Inc.1999 - 2023Site Views Today: 0Page Views Today: 0, The 28 tracked reservoirs above Lake Powell are currently at 58.69% of capacity. There is a 10 percent chance that inflows could be higher than the current maximum probable forecast and a 10 percent chance that inflows could be lower than the minimum probable forecast. For five years after 2012, snow- and rainfall totals were generally low, as the region suffered through a persistent, long-term drought. However, these responses can have a noticeable impact on the river downstream of Glen Canyon Dam. The Bureau of Reclamation announced on May 3, 2022, two separate urgent drought response actions that will help prop up Lake Powell by nearly 1 million acre-feet (maf) of water over the next 12 months (May 2022 through April 2023). Antelope Point Launch Ramp Bullfrog Main Launch Ramp 15 Day Weather Forecast WEco is funded by multiple donors. Get the most up to date information on Lake Powell's water levels and the status of launch ramps from the Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, and more with the links and pages below. water-data.com LakePowell Water Database . Were going to be generating less than we have in quite some time. This includes directly interviewing sources and research / analysis of primary source documents. An acre-foot is the amount of water needed to fill one acre of land to a height of one foot. Our editorial policy and donor list can be viewed atwateredco.org. Its not a hypothetical situation anymore.. google_ad_width = 160; Reclamation will also ensure all appropriate consultation with Basin Tribes, the Republic of Mexico, other federal agencies, water users and non-governmental organizations with respect to implementation of these monthly and annual operations. The NOAA forecast center begins releasing monthly water supply forecasts for the Colorado River Basin in December. In July 2022, the lake reached a historic low of 1,040 feet above sea level. google_ad_width = 160; Drop us a note at tips@coloradosun.com. google_color_url = "426C95"; Antelope Point Marina on Feb. 3, 2022, in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area near Page. google_ad_client = "pub-0146338466817273"; The draft plan is expected to be released next week, according to Becki Bryant, a spokeswoman for Reclamations Upper Colorado River Region. Click for Details, Current Snowpack Conditions for Upper Colorado Basin. The deep, narrow, meandering reservoir extends upstream into southern Utah. (2007). Lake Powell water level at Wahweap Marina in September 2021 | Photo by Bureau of Reclamation, St. George News . Mitchell declined to discuss the pending drought operations plan. Scientists say the current drought is the driest on record in the last twelve hundred years. 0.523 maf in Lake Powell from December 2022 through April 2023. Among the dams on the Colorado is Arizonas Glen Canyon Dam, which creates Lake Powell. Last week, the Bureau of Reclamation announced extraordinary action to keep the water level at Powell from dropping too low, which could threaten hydropower production at Powells Glen Canyon Dam. The bureau also announced it would release an additional 500,000 acre-feet of water from Flaming Gorge reservoir in Wyoming to further raise the water level at Powell. Significant amounts of snowfall over the winter of 20102011 meant more water for Lake Powell, and this effect lasted into the spring of 2012. Climate change also plays a part. google_ad_channel ="2397569894"; Late last fall WAPA, which operates the electric grid and distributes the power to utilities, raised rates 30% to cover reductions in power revenue. 2022, a day after Southern California delared a water . About 40 million people rely on the Colorado River for domestic use and farmers and ranchers use water from the river to irrigate more than 3 million acres of farmland. These projections are critical for planning for an increasingly dry future in the Colorado River Basin, but a new paper from Utah State University says the model may still underestimate the risk. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. Another 480 kaf will be left in Lake Powell by reducing Glen Canyon Dams annual release volume from 7.48 maf to 7.0 maf, as outlined in the 2007 Interim Guidelines that control operations of Glen Canyon Dam and Hoover Dam. It took decades for Lake Powell to reach catastrophically low levels, and according to one expert . Both Moser and Lukas said that dry soil moisture conditions across the Colorado River Basin, which can sponge off valuable runoff before the water makes it into rivers and streams, wont be quite as bad as last year but will still be a negative factor. But the region is battling a multidecade drought with rain harder to come by. KNAU's Melissa Sevigny reports. Flight Center. Electricity produced at Lake Powells Glen Canyon Dam, which serves some 50 Colorado utilities, and dozens of others in the Colorado River Basin, has been cut in half by the 20-year drought, with power levels over the next two years projected to be 47% lower than normal, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. inflow forecast for water year 2022 by approximately 2.2 million acre-feet from . For additional information, see the following news release: https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/#/news-release/4196. The 30-year average was updated in October 2022 from 1981 through 2010 to 1991 through 2020. Lake Powell is so low that it is nearing a dead pool, in which water levels aren't high enough to deliver water downstream. The forecast estimated that the amount of water that will flow into Lake Powell this spring and summer will be about 59% of average, based on 30 years of data from 1991 to 2020. Credit: Alex Hager. Detailed Map of Powell Specifically, Reclamation modeled operations in WY 2023 as follows in the August and September 24-Month Studies: In accordance with the May 3rd Letter, consistent with the provisions of the 2007 Interim Guidelines, and to preserve the benefits to Glen Canyon Dam facilities from 2022 Operations into 2023 and 2024, Reclamation will consult with the Basin States on monthly and annual operations. With low-runoff conditions and . On Tuesday, the lake fell below 3,525 feet above sea level, a key target elevation that water managers have been trying to keep Powell above because it provides a buffer from the minimum level at which Glen Canyon Dam can generate power. (At normal water levels, both rivers are essentially part of the reservoir.) google_color_border = "FFFFFF"; The reduction of releases from Glen Canyon Dam in water year 2022 (resulting in increased storage in Lake Powell) will not affect future operating determinations and will be accounted for as if this volume of water had been delivered to Lake Mead. Reclamation will continue to consult with the Basin States, Basin Tribes, the Republic of Mexico and other partners on Colorado River operations to consider and determine whether additional measures should be taken to further enhance the preservation of these benefits, as well as recovery protocols, including those of future protective measures for both Lakes Powell and Mead. 159 0 obj <> endobj U.S. Arizona Drought Climate Change Water Conservation. This is the big warning bell.. //-->, Printable Version To view the most current reservoir elevation projections, click on: Lake Powell Elevation Projections. The reservoir's levels rise after consistent rain or snowpack melt in the area. For additional information, the news release can be found here: https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/news-release/4294. Reclamation will continue to carefully monitor hydrologic and operational conditions and assess the need for additional responsive actions and/or changes to operations. He began his journalism career in New Hampshire, then moved West and became a reporter at the Lafayette News. KNAUs Melissa Sevigny reports. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Wind affected on the west and south facing aspects of the Gore Range seen on, April 7, 2022, near Vail. She also sits on the Upper Colorado River Commission. In the latter half of the decade, the drought eased somewhat. Up to 80 percent of water use in the basin is for agricultural purposes, but urban water conservation serves an important purpose, too. https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/news-release/4294, https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/#/news-release/4196, USGS site #09180500 - Colorado River near Cisco, UT, USGS site #09315000 - Green River at Green River, UT, USGS site #09379500 - San Juan River near Bluff, UT, USGS site #09380000 - Colorado River at Lees Ferry, AZ, Snowpack Conditions Upper Colorado Region Above Lake Powell, Lake Powell Inflow Forecast April-July Inflow Forecast, Current Water Year Inflow Forecast Monthly Outlooks, Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program, LTEMP - Long-Term Experimental & Management Plan, Report to Congress - Operations of Glen Canyon Dam - Water Year 2015-2016, National Park Service Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, National Park Service Grand Canyon National Park, U.S. The Colorado River flows from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado through the southwestern United States. At the beginning of the series in 1999, water levels in Lake Powell were relatively high, and the water was a clear, dark blue. Lake Powell has fallen victim to excessive water use as a 20-year drought parches the region. Back then, Hannegan said, We made an assumption that our WAPA (Western Area Power Administration) allocation would be firm, reliable and always there. Surface Water Elevation (feet) Lake Powell End of Month Elevations1 . Last Reading: 3521.11 on Feb 27, 2023 Powell was last within 2" of this elevation on Feb 26, 2023 There are currently 1,734,731,016,499 gallons of water in Lake Powell! Lake Powell is now at a historic low. Learn more at, Photos: Heron Lake, New Mexico, August 2022, Data viz: Elephant Butte Reservoir levels, to increase the volume, depth and power of journalism, https://www.watereducationcolorado.org/fresh-water-news/, www.watereducationcolorado.org/fresh-water-news/. There are continued discussions when and how that same amount of water (0.523 maf) will be . The end of January elevation and storage of Lake Powell were 3,523.45 feet (177 feet from full pool) and 5.45 million acre-feet (maf) (23 percent of live capacity), respectively. While the lake was significantly higher in 2011 and 2012 than in 2005, a careful comparison of the side canyons reveals that the level was still not back to 1999 levels, when the lake was near full capacity. Becky Mitchell is director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board, the states lead water planning agency. From there, a swing to the northeast delivers boats into Lake Powell's main artery. The unregulated inflow volume to Lake Powell during January was 361 thousand acre-feet (kaf) (107 percent of average). The bureau, in consultation with tribal nations and the seven Colorado River Basin states, decided to keep nearly 500,000 acre-feet of water in Lake Powell that had originally been planned to be released to the Lower Basin states of Nevada, Arizona and California this year. Cheap sewer pipe repairs can push toxic fumes into homes and schools heres Hard water: In these metro neighborhoods, few drink the tap water. Depending on the severity of the system emergency, the response from Glen Canyon Dam can be significant, within the full range of the operating capacity of the power plant for as long as is necessary to maintain balance in the transmission system. We need to get ourselves prepared," he says. The deep, narrow, meandering reservoir extends upstream into southern Utah. " 9`SADP zg Ab``#@ 7 3 At the same time, electric utilities across the West are looking for other green options and hoping that hydropower production wont stop altogether. 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Wind will be heavy at times leading to difficult if not impossible travel Drop us a note at tips coloradosun.com. Through April 2023 for comment Geological Survey for comment Powell to reach catastrophically levels... Decade, the States lead water planning agency join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek 's free.! To a height of one foot is the amount of water needed fill... And assess the need for additional information, the drought eased somewhat Geological for! Region suffered through a persistent, long-term drought Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Speech! Water level of each of our Lake Powell water level at Wahweap Marina in September 2021 Photo... From the Rocky Mountains in Colorado through the southwestern United States is director of the level! 160 ; Drop us a note at tips @ coloradosun.com half of the,. Are continued discussions when and how that same amount of water needed to fill one of... 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