Weber Basin Water Conservancy District is now releasing 1,500 cu ft/second of water out of Pineview Reservoir, which can safely send out about 1,600 cu ft/second into the Ogden River. We are “really pushing the limits,' general manager Scott Paxman said.
Water managers also pay attention to soil moisture, or how much the soil is saturated with water. The higher the soil moisture, the less snowmelt it absorbs and the more water makes its way down to reservoirs. This year, according to a March report from the Department of Natural Resources, soil moisture is at 56% — about 4% more than normal for that time of year.
“We don’t have control over what the weather is going to do, and so we’re constantly making adjustments in terms of how much space we feel like we need to have for flood control in the reservoir,” she said. They ask questions like, “How much should we be releasing at any one time? What’s happening downstream from those releases that we need to be aware of?”
He said Echo Reservoir will have similar release levels, but their safe channel capacity is higher, around 2,250If spring runoff pushes water through the system beyond that safe channel capacity, Paxman said water managers can’t close the release valves to stop the flow. If they did, the reservoirs would overflow, and they would lose what control they have over the flows.
Water management in the southwest part of the state looks a little different, because they have fewer diversion options, said Karry Rathje, spokesperson for the Washington County Water Conservancy District.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Here’s how much water golf courses use across UtahView data about all of the state’s 114 golf courses in an interactive map and spreadsheet.
Read more »
Letter: Will the Utah Supreme Court return to Utahns their birthright: Access to public trust water?Do you know that the water in our streams and lakes is yours? By the Utah Constitution (Section XX), all the water in the state is held in trust for the public until it is diverted into a lawful system headed for beneficial use. This is the foundation of the majority of Utah’s reservoir state parks: Yuba, Wanship, Milford, etc. You can use that public trust to float, swim, fish, and more as your beneficial use of the public’s water.
Read more »
Weekend warmup needed, Utah hydrologist saysWith a weekend warmup, plenty of people are concerned about the potential for flooding but hydrologists say this first warmup is important.
Read more »
Utah requires online education course as off-road fun kicks offRoad advocacy groups stresses safety during popular Easter Weekend.
Read more »
Building evacuated after small explosion in University of Utah labA building on the University of Utah campus was evacuated Saturday afternoon after a small explosion in a laboratory.
Read more »
Building evacuated after small explosion in University of Utah labA handful of people were evacuated from the University of Utah's Fletcher Building on Saturday after a small explosion in a laboratory. There were no injuries.
Read more »