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- Reclamation Ends Water Release from Ririe Reservoir
News Release Archive
Reclamation Ends Water Release from Ririe Reservoir
Media Contact:
John Redding, (208) 378-5212, jredding@usbr.gov
Mike Beus, mbeus@usbr.gov
For Release: February 10, 2011
The Bureau of Reclamation curtailed water releases from Ririe Dam at approximately 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 9. Releases were scheduled to last through next Tuesday and were intended to restore winter flood control space in the Reservoir, but were curtailed once ice jamming was observed. Ririe Dam is located about 15 miles northeast of Idaho Falls and about 4 miles south of Ririe, Idaho.
Reservoir content is presently at 43,200 acre-feet, leaving 47,300 acre-feet of space to control flooding, which is more than 94 percent of the requirement. Therefore, no additional releases will be scheduled until the weather warms causing ice and snow to melt from the outlet channel. The most restrictive remnants of ice jams will be removed to accommodate flows from localized snowmelt below the dam. The first ice jams were observed at about 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday and excavators were mobilized to relieve the blockage. By noon, additional ice jams were observed and the decision was made to curtail the releases from the dam. Four excavators were engaged in ice removal and worked until late in the night.
Water overflowing the banks affected at least one grain field, one county road, and one structure.
Ririe Dam was completed in 1977 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and is owned and operated by Reclamation. The reservoir has a total capacity of 100,500 acre-feet including 80,500 acre-feet for irrigation, flood control and recreation, and 10,000 acre-feet reserved exclusively for flood control.
Local residents with questions about the reservoir operations may contact Mike Beus, Water Operations Manager at (208) 678-0461, ext. 27.
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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.
