Flow interruption for maintenance West Branch of Delaware River

afishinado

afishinado

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From the Delaware River site >

Below is a note from NYC Watershed. Unless the leak presents an immediate danger to lives below the dam this is totally unconscionable during the brown trout prespawn / spawn. If there is no immediate danger they should at least wait for a day with enough rain that the runoff from Oquaga Creek would cover the downstream stream bed.

Please take a few minutes to let NYC DEP Deputy Commissioner Paul Rush know your thoughts:

Paul Rush (NYC): prush@dep.nyc.gov, 845-334-7107

“Important news for folks along the West Branch Delaware River.

DEP will temporarily reduce the downstream release from Cannonsville Reservoir for three days starting tomorrow. The reduction in flow will allow DEP to fix a leaking pipe in the release chamber, and it will let the U.S. Geological Survey calibrate its gage immediately downstream of the reservoir.

The current downstream release from Cannonsville is set at 150 cubic feet per second (97 mgd). The following flow changes will happen starting tomorrow.

Monday – DEP will reduce the flow to 40 cubic feet per second for several hours in the morning while USGS takes readings to calibrate the gage in Stilesville. The release will increase to 150 cfs by noontime.

Tuesday – DEP will ramp down the release to zero flow by 5 a.m. The shutdown is necessary for DEP to safely repair a leaking pipe in release chamber. The shutdown is expected to last the majority of the day. DEP will also work with USGS to remove debris from around its gage. DEP will ramp back up to 150 cfs when the repair is complete.

Wednesday – DEP will again reduce the downstream flow to 40 cfs in the morning while USGS takes additional readings to calibrate its gage in Stilesville. DEP will then ramp back up to 150 cfs.”

Link to source > http://thedelawareriverclub.com/blog/
 
Repair work on Cannonsville Dam pipe is completed as per this FB post by NYC >

https://www.facebook.com/nycwatershed
 
Good news! It looks like the outflow is just starting to increase.
 
Found this from the FUDR with pics about the flow interruption on the D WB :-o


http://web-extract.constantcontact.com/v1/social_annotation_v2?permalink_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fmyemail.constantcontact.com%2FPost-Mortem-on-the-Cannonsville-Reservoir-Shutdown.html%3Fsoid%3D1110504437966%26aid%3DtK8p09FEVgE&image_url=https%3A%2F%2Fmlsvc01-prod.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec8f83f8201%2F944502b7-3063-4419-bf18-84ac22912ab3.jpg%3Fver%3D1602252449000&fbclid=IwAR33p4bYOCNSxQuZ2sF5IGF-n7mAOAuta9ZOA5uRO3FKj3HL1YBu6VMAap8
 
Disgusting

Can't let these NYC scumbags get their paws in the Lehigh, for this reason. They dont care about anyones interests but their own
 
Timmy,

The reservoir on the Lehigh is a completely different animal. NYC does not own that reservoir, its a federally operated reservoir. The Upper Delaware reservoirs were built and are owned by NYC.

No one wants to see these types of events occur, but everything I read about the issue this was somewhat unavoidable. Kind of being the nature of the beast. Unfortunately.
 
I understand, but the NYC folks are currently doing a study on the Lehigh, correct? I've heard from guys that know more about than me that there is some cause for concern if they get involved at FEW.

I hope you are right, LR.

Are you a member of Lehigh Coldwater Fishery Alliance? If so please PM me about joining the organization, thx
 
A general observation regarding dams....Many coldwater tail-race fisheries are created solely by their source dams. The reality is that the dams on rare occasions need maintenance or the addition of another feature that requires temporarily diminished discharge or no discharge. The good news is that any losses in the fisheries that they support can be restored over time. Fisheries departments typically review such projects ahead of time and try to assist the dam operators by recommending strategies that will minimize fish population losses. Despite this, it is understandable that sometimes losses can’t be avoided.
 
Mike wrote:
A general observation regarding dams....Many coldwater tail-race fisheries are created solely by their source dams. The reality is that the dams on rare occasions need maintenance or the addition of another feature that requires temporarily diminished discharge or no discharge. The good news is that any losses in the fisheries that they support can be restored over time. Fisheries departments typically review such projects ahead of time and try to assist the dam operators by recommending strategies that will minimize fish population losses. Despite this, it is understandable that sometimes losses can’t be avoided.
Click to expand...

Yes, no doubt maintenance needs to be done from time to time causing a flow interruption.

In this case I don't really see anything that could have been done differently to avoid the situation.

The Upper D trout and macros should be fine in both the short and long term.
 
Timmy,

Yes. NYC and DRBC are co-sponsoring the study to use FEW as a source of water to help with the salt line in Philly. They are basically looking into the feasibility of how much water can be stored in the reservoir safely for this purpose and what changes need to be implemented to make this happen. That's the short version.

NYC will have no control over reservoir operations. If NYC or DRBC needs some water to push the salt line back, then they call the ACOE and will ask for X number of CFS of water to be released.

NYC and DRBC are federally authorized to keep the salt line from moving up the Delaware. They realize that with climate change, water demands and everything else, there will be a need for additional water storage within the basin. FEW reservoir is a likely candidate thats why they are doing the study. This could also give NYC and DRBC more flexibility on how they release water from various reservoirs in the basin.

If done correctly, this would be a big win for both the Lehigh and Upper Delaware.

LR
 
LehighRegular wrote:
Timmy,

Yes. NYC and DRBC are co-sponsoring the study to use FEW as a source of water to help with the salt line in Philly. They are basically looking into the feasibility of how much water can be stored in the reservoir safely for this purpose and what changes need to be implemented to make this happen. That's the short version.

NYC will have no control over reservoir operations. If NYC or DRBC needs some water to push the salt line back, then they call the ACOE and will ask for X number of CFS of water to be released.

NYC and DRBC are federally authorized to keep the salt line from moving up the Delaware. They realize that with climate change, water demands and everything else, there will be a need for additional water storage within the basin. FEW reservoir is a likely candidate thats why they are doing the study. This could also give NYC and DRBC more flexibility on how they release water from various reservoirs in the basin.

If done correctly, this would be a big win for both the Lehigh and Upper Delaware.

LR
Click to expand...

All true above, but using the FEW water instead of Cannonsville or Pepaceton can result in less water for the Upper Delaware WB and/or EB.

The devil is in the details. We should watch closely and evaluate the flow regimen and formula for building it.
 
OR....it could mean more water for the Upper Delaware fishery.
Yes, devil is in the details.
 
My buddy fished yesterday and had his best day in 6 weeks. The work didn't kill all of the fish but it could have been done much better by waiting for more flow from the feeders.
 
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