White River System Lakes Update

Headnote:

It really concerns me that residents are moving back into their homes and making repairs as soon as they can. I know we can’t tell the residents what to do, however, since we are still in the early stages of our rainy season (April-June), we need to keep telling our residents that additional releases from the Dam are highly likely and they need to be prepared. Both Table Rock and Beaver Lakes are near the top of their flood storage capacity and any future rainfalls (inflow) will have to be passed through hydropower generation and spillway gate releases if the inflow cannot be passed strictly through hydropower generation. I will be working with the media this week to try and stress our concerns for additional releases below Beaver and Table Rock Dams. It’s bad enough to be flooded once but if our residents go in and repair the damages and get flooded again it will be even worse. Please let me know if there is anything our office can do in your communities to pass our concerns on. Thanks again for everything you have done to notify and assist the public you serve over the past couple of weeks. –Al

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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would like to once again remind everyone about the current situation with each of the upper White River system reservoirs. This includes Beaver, Table Rock, Bull Shoals, Norfork, and Greers Ferry Lakes.

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WHITE RIVER SYSTEM LAKES UPDATE

LITTLE ROCK, Ark., April 18 – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would like to remind everyone that extreme heavy rains throughout March and April have left the upper White River system lakes with almost no capacity for additional flood storage. Beaver, Table Rock, Bull Shoals, Norfork and Greers Ferry Lakes are currently at or near the top of spillway gates. This means any significant additional rainfall will have to be passed directly through those gates, greatly diminishing the project’s ability to reduce flood damages.

This is similar to what happened during the rainfall event of April 10. While the Corps will do everything possible to limit peak releases from the projects, the amount of each release is completely dependent upon the intensity and duration of any future rainfall event. Future basin rainfalls may produce releases equal to or substantially larger than what was recently experienced.
Under more normal circumstances, each lake would collect rainfall and runoff. Then, dam operators would release that water gradually over time as channel capacity downstream became available, allowing more flood storage to build in the lakes.

However, persistent flooding along the lower White River system has prevented those gradual releases over time, as Corps Reservoir Control continues to manage the water to reduce flood crests downstream. Making any “pre-releases” to increase reservoir storage capacity in this situation, while potentially beneficial to some, would only worsen the flooding of others downstream.

WHITE RIVER

It also would not be in accordance with the established guidelines in the approved water control plan for the reservoirs. The current water control plan is comprehensive in nature and attempts to balance benefits throughout the entire White River system. This plan has been in use for many years and was developed through extensive public involvement as well as various perspectives from local, state, and federal entities.

Citizens are advised to stay in close contact with local officials for important updates regarding this situation. Any forecast rains could also cause a rapid return of high White River levels further downstream so property owners should stay abreast of National Weather Service river stage forecasts. The Weather Service posts river stage forecasts at http://www.srh.noaa.gov/lzk/.
Information regarding lake levels and power generation is available at www.swl-wc.usace.army.mil, under the Daily Reports (Little Rock District Lakes Pool Forecast) or Real-time Data (Reservoirs) headings.

Note to editors: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Districts are organized along watershed boundaries and three districts are currently impacted by possible rainfalls:

• For areas around Carlyle or Rend Lakes, contact St. Louis Public Affairs at (314) 331-8002 or the Carlyle Lake Project Office at (61 594-2484, or at Rend Lake at (61 724-2493.
• For Wappapello Lake and the St. Francis River upstream, contact St. Louis PA at (314) 331-8002 or the Wappapello Lake Project Office at (573) 222-8562.
• For areas on the St. Francis River downstream of Wappapello, call the Memphis District PAO at (901) 544-3360.
• For areas below Georgetown on the White River call the Memphis District PAO at (901) 544-3360.