News Release Archive

Flows Increasing on the Owyhee River

Media Contact: John Redding, (208) 378-5212, jredding@pn.usbr.gov
Brian Sauer, bsauer@pn.usbr.gov

For Release: April 05, 2006

The Owyhee Irrigation District is issuing a warning of increased flows below Owyhee Dam over the next several days. These flood control releases are necessary due to extremely high inflows into Owyhee Reservoir. Owyhee Dam is located on the Owyhee River in Oregon, approximately 50 miles west of Boise, Idaho

Releases from the reservoir are currently at a rate of about 5,700 cubic feet per second. The increased runoff is a result of higher than normal snow pack and warm and wet weather conditions over the last week. Flows below the dam will reach 10,000 cfs and possibly higher.

Downstream flows will fluctuate to sustain the necessary reservoir storage requirements. High flows are expected to continue on the Owyhee River during the next few weeks.

Owyhee Dam was constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1932 and is operated and maintained by the Owyhee Irrigation District.

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