River releases to be cut back again
Despite a full lake (and one that is 10 feet higher than average for
this time of year), inflows have dropped off sharply, and Reclamation
feels river releases must be dropped to now to conserve storage.
At 4pm on Wednesday, river releases will drop from 3,500cfs to 3,250cfs.
At 4pm on Thursday, river releases will drop from 3,250cfs to 3,000cfs.
It is worth noting that during the last four years, lake elevations on
Memorial Day have been 10+ feet higher than minimum boat launch levels
required at Horseshoe Bend, which tends to emphasize the point the
lake is being managed quite conservatively. The fact that both
minimum probable and most probable operating plans show the SAME
minimum lake elevation of 3,618ft emphasizes the point that the water
is being managed exclusively for the lake and ignoring the river, and
that our hopes of balanced management are still a dream.
