WATER AND WATER STORAGE IN THE WEST

John Lawson, Area Manager for the Wyoming Area of the Bureau of Reclamation, will be the guest speaker on September 9, at 7:00 at the Oil & Gas Conservation Commission Bldg. at 2011 King Blvd.

The Wyoming Area office administers several multipurpose projects to the region by supplying water to 43 irrigation entities which collectively serve more than 580,000 acres of land and 8 municipal and industrial contractors, as well as providing hydroelectric power, flood control, fish and wildlife habitat enhancement and recreation.

Snowpack in the upper North Platte drainage basin above Seminole and Pathfinder Reservoirs stood at 150 percent of normal as Wyoming entered the spring runoff season.  In addition, Seminole, Pathfinder, Glendo, and Guernsey Reservoirs were at unseasonably high levels.  The efforts to draw down the reservoirs in anticipation of heavy runoff began last fall, when irrigation districts questioned the risk of letting so much water go downstream.  River flooding did not reach the maximum forecast levels due to several factors including water storage strategy, lack of heavy snowfall, and cooler temperatures which slowed the rate of snowmelt.  Large amounts of snow across the upper Great Plains this year further complicated the operation of the overall system of water management of the river basins under the control of this area. 

The program is free and open to the public!