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Published March 23, 2010, 08:00 AM

Releases from Baldhill to stay level

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, will maintain Baldhill Dam at a discharge of 3,000 cubic feet per second throughout the next week, it said in a press release Monday. Releases from Baldhill Dam are based on forecasted inflows from the National Weather Service. The corps must balance inflows and outflows so that the Baldhill Dam emergency spillway is not overtopped. The NWS has forecasted that the Sheyenne River will crest in Valley City on March 24 at 15 feet.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, will maintain Baldhill Dam at a discharge of 3,000 cubic feet per second throughout the next week, it said in a press release Monday.

Releases from Baldhill Dam are based on forecasted inflows from the National Weather Service. The corps must balance inflows and outflows so that the Baldhill Dam emergency spillway is not overtopped. The NWS has forecasted that the Sheyenne River will crest in Valley City on March 24 at 15 feet.

A flow of 3,000 cfs correspondes to a stage of 13 feet at Valley City. Outflow from the dam combined with local runoff has raised this stage to 14 feet. Major flood stage there is 17 feet, and the majority of the city is currently protected to 19.5 feet. Emergency levees there are at a stage of 21.5 feet, allowing for two feet of freeboard. Minor flood protection measures are not put in place until 18 feet.

“We’ve still have a lot of snow to melt in the upper basin right now, so we still need to continue to discharge 3,000 cfs to stay ahead of the runoff” said Ferris Chamberlin, St. Paul District water management chief for the corps. “The good news is that there’s room for storage in the reservoir. If we receive any rainfall in the basin, there will be room to store it.”

The corps drew Lake Ashtabula, located on the Sheyenne River, down to its maximum level in preparation for spring runoff.

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