National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Missouri Basin River Forecast Center
Water Supply Statement
Issued in cooperation with the Natural
Resources Conservation Service
Issued:  May 14, 2014

 

 

  

 Missouri River Basin Streamflow Forecast as of May 1, 2014       Missouri River Basin Mountain Snowpack as of May 1, 2014

 

 

Upper Missouri Basin 

THE HIGH ELEVATION SNOW PACK IN THE UPPER MISSOURI BASIN AS OF
MAY 12 WAS ABOVE AVERAGE.  THE SNOW PACK ABOVE TOSTON,
MONTANA WAS 143 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.  THE SNOW PACK BETWEEN TOSTON
AND FORT PECK, MONTANA WAS 179 PERCENT.  THE SNOW PACK IN THE
ST MARY AND MILK RIVER BASINS WAS 148 PERCENT.
APRIL PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE UPPER MISSOURI BASIN WAS NEAR TO
ABOVE AVERAGE.  BASIN PRECIPITATION SUMMARIES FOR THE MISSOURI BASIN
INCLUDE: MILK ST. MARY,  112 PERCENT; MILK CANADA, 103 PERCENT;
LOWER MILK, 126 PERCENT; ABOVE TOSTON, 96 PERCENT; TOSTON TO
FT. PECK, 82 PERCENT.

 

 April 2014 Upper Missouri Mean Precip                     Oct-Apr WY2014 Upper Missouri Mean Precip

 

STREAM FLOW IN THE UPPER MISSOURI BASIN IS FORECAST TO BE 
ABOVE AVERAGE DURING THIS SPRING AND SUMMER.  THE ST.
MARY RIVER IS FORECAST TO HAVE 114 PERCENT OF AVERAGE MAY-SEPTEMBER
FLOWS.  RUNOFF IS EXPECTED TO RANGE AROUND 137 PERCENT OF AVERAGE
FOR THE MISSOURI BASIN ABOVE FORT PECK, MONTANA.  

 


     Upper Missouri April 1, 2014 Spring and Summer Streamflow Forecasts

 

OF THE FOUR MAJOR IRRIGATION RESERVOIRS IN MONTANA: LIMA RESERVOIR
HAD 74 PERCENT AVERAGE STORAGE, CLARK CANYON WAS HOLDING 75 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE WATER, GIBSON RESERVOIR HAD 37 PERCENT OF AVERAGE STORED
WATER, AND FRESNO RESERVOIR HAD 122 PERCENT OF AVERAGE STORED WATER.
THE MAJOR HYDROELECTRIC RESERVOIRS IN MONTANA (CANYON FERRY AND
FORT PECK) HAD MONTHEND STORAGE IN THE AVERAGE TO BELOW AVERAGE
RANGE; 89 AND 102 PERCENT OF AVERAGE WATER, RESPECTIVELY.

 



Yellowstone Basin

 

THE HIGH ELEVATION SNOW PACK IN THE YELLOWSTONE BASIN WAS ABOVE AVERAGE
ON MAY 12. THE SNOW PACK IN THE UPPER YELLOWSTONE BASIN WAS
159 PERCENT OF AVERAGE. THE SNOW PACKS IN THE WIND, BIGHORN, AND
SHOSHONE BASINS WERE 132, 149, AND 151 PERCENT OF AVERAGE,
RESPECTIVELY. THE SNOW PACKS IN THE TONGUE AND POWDER BASINS WERE
153 AND 161 PERCENT OF AVERAGE, RESPECTIVELY.


PRECIPITATION DURING APRIL WAS NEAR TO BELOW AVERAGE.  THE UPPER
YELLOWSTONE RIVER BASIN RECEIVED 114 PERCENT OF AVERAGE PRECIPITATION
WHILE THE LOWER YELLOWSTONE BASIN REPORTED 57 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
THE BIGHORN BASIN RECEIVED 98 PERCENT OF AVERAGE PRECIPITATION
WHILE THE WIND RIVER BASIN RECEIVED 43 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
THE LITTLE BIGHORN - UPPER TONGUE BASIN RECEIVED 78 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE AND THE POWDER RIVER HAD 61 PERCENT OF AVERAGE PRECIPITATION.

 



Yellowstone Basin

  April 2014 Yellowstone Mean Precip                    Oct-Apr WY2014 Yellowstone Mean Precip
 
FORECAST STREAM FLOW IN THE YELLOWSTONE BASIN IS ABOVE
AVERAGE RANGE FOR THIS SPRING AND SUMMER.  STREAM
FLOW FOR THE WIND-BIGHORN BASIN ABOVE ST. XAVIER, MONTANA IS
FORECAST TO BE ABOUT 125 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.  FLOW IN THE
TONGUE BASIN IS EXPECTED TO BE 139 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.  FLOWS IN THE
POWDER RIVER ARE EXPECTED TO BE ABOUT 175 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
MONTHEND STORAGE AT BOYSEN RESERVOIR WAS 109 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
STORED WATER IN BUFFALO BILL RESERVOIR WAS 116 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
MONTHEND STORAGE WAS 92 PERCENT OF AVERAGE AT BIGHORN RESERVOIR.

 


     Yellowstone May 1, 2014 Spring and Summer Streamflow Forecasts

 

Platte Basin  

THE HIGH ELEVATION  SNOW PACK IN THE UPPER NORTH PLATTE BASIN WAS
131 PERCENT OF AVERAGE ON MAY 12.  THE SNOW PACK IN THE NORTH
PLATTE  BASIN BELOW SEMINOE RESERVOIR WAS 177 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
THE SNOW PACK IN THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN WAS 141 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.
APRIL PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE PLATTE BASIN WAS NEAR TO ABOVE  
AVERAGE. 
PRECIPITATION DURING APRIL IN THE NORTH PLATTE
BASIN ABOVE SEMINOE RESERVOIR WAS 65 PERCENT OF AVERAGE. IN THE
NORTH PLATTE BASIN BETWEEN SEMINOE RESERVOIR AND GUERNSY RESERVOIR
PRECIPITATION WAS 68 PERCENT OF AVERAGE. THE NORTH PLATTE BASIN
BELOW GUERNSY RESERVOIR HAD 75 PERCENT OF AVERAGE PRECIPITATION.
THE HIGH ELEVATIONS OF THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN HAD 70 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE PRECIPITATION WHEREAS THE PLAINS HAD 70 PERCENT OF AVERAGE
MARCH PRECIPITATION.




 

 April 2014 Platte Mean Precip                          Oct-Apr WY2014 Platte Mean Precip

  

STREAM FLOW IN THE PLATTE BASIN IS FORECAST TO BE ABOVE
AVERAGE DURING THIS SPRING AND SUMMER.
RUNOFF FOR STREAMS ABOVE SEMINOE RESERVOIR ARE EXPECTED TO BE NEAR 138 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.  
STREAM FLOWS FOR THE NORTH PLATTE
BELOW SEMINOE RESERVOIR ARE FORECAST TO BE NEAR 123 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE. STREAMS IN THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN ABOVE SOUTH PLATTE,
COLORADO CAN EXPECT NEAR 115 PERCENT OF AVERAGE FLOW. FOR THE
REMAINDER OF THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN FLOWS ARE EXPECTED NEAR
115 PERCENT OF AVERAGE.

STORED WATER IN THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN WAS 104 PERCENT OF AVERAGE
ON MAY 1.  STORED WATER IN THE NORTH PLATTE BASIN WAS 80
PERCENT OF AVERAGE.

   North Platte Streamflow Fcst          South Platte Streamflow Fcst

 
PRECIPITATION MAPS
April 2014  WY 2014
April 2014 Precipitation Percent of 1981-2010 Average WY2014 Precipitation as Percent of 1981-2010 Average
April 2014 Basin Mean Precipitation          WY2014 Basin Mean Precipitation
April 2014 MBRFC Basin Mean Precipitation      WY2014 MBRFC Basin Mean Precipitation