Dry discussion

Drought management measures passed for the Delaware River

By LIAM MAYO
Posted 12/31/69

DELAWARE RIVER VALLEY — While the Delaware River has not yet reached drought conditions, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) is preparing for that eventuality with the declaration of a …

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Dry discussion

Drought management measures passed for the Delaware River

Posted

DELAWARE RIVER VALLEY — While the Delaware River has not yet reached drought conditions, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) is preparing for that eventuality with the declaration of a “water supply emergency,” which will allow for mitigation efforts to be implemented if conditions worsen. 

The DRBC, a partnership between the states which border the Delaware River as well as the federal government which oversees water management of the river, approved drought management resolutions, including the declaration of a water supply emergency, in a December 5 meeting. 

Managing the dry conditions has been discussed for several months. Over the past 90 days, the upper Delaware River basin has received eight inches less precipitation than average, and the lower Delaware River basin has received 10 inches less.

Governments along the Delaware River have also declared widespread drought conditions. Only two counties—Wayne and Lackawanna, in Pennsylvania—are under normal conditions, with every other county under a drought watch or warning. 

The DRBC is the government entity that would declare drought conditions for the entire river valley. However, the DRBC has not yet made that declaration; the river valley is still  “normal” as of this time. 

A river-wide drought declaration would be made if the upper basin reservoirs Neversink, Pepacton and Cannonsville, which feed into New York City’s water supplies, are less then 42 percent full taken all together, and if water stays below that level for five consecutive days. 

At those levels the  DRBC will declare a drought watch for the river, with declarations of drought warning and emergency to follow if levels continue to drop. Currently they are well below average for this time of year at 51.8 percent full as of Saturday, December 7, yet are still above the drought-watch threshold. 

The resolution passed at the December 5 meeting allows the DRBC to reduce the amount of water it releases from its reservoirs to meet the needs of its partnership states. See sidebar for the specific numbers. 

The DRBC has also put measures in place that would use the Mongaup reservoir system and Lake Wallenpaupack for drought management. Both water bodies are operated for hydroelectric generation, by Eagle Creek Hydropower and Brookfield Renewable respectively. One of the resolutions requires both companies to operate their systems in accordance with the drought measures in the DRBC’s water code. 

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