Why the salt water line in the Delaware River is creeping upstream

[vcregular]

Why the salt water line in the Delaware River is creeping upstream

Low water flows are still plaguing eastern Pa. Amazingly Cannonsville Reservoir is down to about 25% and all the flow targets on the Delaware are just meeting their minimum requirements.

 

[krayfish2]

I don't see that lake getting ANYWHERE near capacity for spring 2017. Unless we have a wet spring and massive shows, 2017 will be the third straight year of crap conditions. Keeping the fingers crossed and we are still in pretty severe drought conditions around here.

 

[brookieaddict]

It's all about mass, greater mass overwhelms lesser mass, that's why you have tidal rivers and river basins.

On the up side it will open up more species of fish who can live in brackish water.

 

[Chaz]

Since the immediate future weather predictions are for further dry weather. It's a problem for the river now and for the water intakes along the tidal section of the river. The reservoir could fill up in a hurry if we got a lot of rain over the next couple of months. I don't see that happening though without the weather pattern breaking.

 

[afishinado]

I don't see how they can continue to run >1000 cfs (average is 100 cfs this time of year - see below) out of Cannonsville. The resevoir is almost depleted at 21% capacity and dropping quickly here. They will have to run

 

[krayfish2]

1000+ cfs can't be good for any mid-river redds..... especially when the flow drops to 100cfs or less. Another concern is damage to the big browns in the lake, the big smallies and large alewife population. 21% capacity is mighty low and it would take extraordinary precipitation to refill the lake. Doesn't give me a good feeling for 2017. With the drought conditions in the region and the draw down of Wallenpaupack left little water for the other reservoirs to release. The last 3 years has been pretty rough on that river system but the fish appear to be hanging in there despite every possible attempt to wreck the fishery.

 

[wgmiller]

Rising sea levels and the continued affects of drought on our waterways. We're going to be seeing more situations like this in the coming years!

 

[vcregular]

Cannonsville below 20%

 

[timmyt]

Is there still a problem with the dam in cannonsville? Is it possible they are taking advantage of the drought by letting it run down to expose the dam?

 

[afishinado]

timmyt wrote:
Is there still a problem with the dam in cannonsville? Is it possible they are taking advantage of the drought by letting it run down to expose the dam?

No. There is no problem with the dam. The reservoir is down to 18% capacity and they are still releasing water at 5-10x the normal flow for the season.

 

[trout48]

I have never seen Beltzville so low in 66 yrs and they say they are releasing water to keep the salt line down. If the Army corps would regulate that for trout fishing you would have a great trout stream in the Lehigh.

 

[krayfish2]

A forum member ran up to see the situation yesterday. They sent photos of the lake and it's hard to believe just how low it is. The shortage of precipitation up that way is pretty bad. He also sent a picture of a BIG brown that looked like a dying Coho. Huge hunks of flesh looked to be missing from the fish like it was hit with a machete a few times. Binghamton got 27.5" of snow in the last 7 days. The phots from yesterday showed virtually no snow so assuming the precip shortage continues.

 

[krayfish2]

New release from FUDR.......

Delaware River Drought Update

Last week the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) declared a "Drought Watch" for the entire Delaware River watershed. This declaration enables the DRBC to uniformly manage basin reservoirs in a way that conserves water supply, adjusts river flows, and repels the northward migration of the "salt line" out of the Delaware Bay. As of November 20, the salt line was 21 miles from New Jersey and Pennsylvania water supply intakes and it has not been this far north since 1963. In the Upper Delaware region the combination of dry weather conditions and large required water releases to meet downstream flow targets at Montague and Trenton, NJ have caused alarmingly low levels in the NYC Delaware basin reservoirs (Cannonsville, Pepacton, Neversink). If dry conditions persist in the watershed, releases from the NYC reservoirs will still be required to meet these flow targets (further draining already low reservoirs). Even if enough precipitation occurs below the NYC reservoirs to satisfy the flow targets, depleted reservoir levels will trigger very low releases to the river. This could occur over an extended period of time, unless and until the coming months bring significant precipitation to replenish the reservoirs. We will be keeping a close eye on the impacts to the river under these challenging conditions and working closely with reservoir and river managers to ensure maximum protections are implemented.

 

[TJones]

Flow is cut back to 100 CFS now.

 

[timmyt]

How much rain did they get up there yesterday? Looks like there is a bunch headed that way today too, hopefully they get pounded

 

[krayfish2]

Last look, the release was 80cfs from Cannonsville. The feeders have it swell to 400 by Hale and the Main is over 2500cfs. Beaverkill which hasn't seen 100cfs in months got over 1000. Inflow at Walton got over 1300 and is currently dropping. With the rain that is scheduled to hit the area, I'd expect significant rises by morning. The main should run strong for a while due to this soaker. If we can get these every other week until May 1st, 2017 might not be a bust. Lol

 

[krayfish2]

Latest post from FUDR......

Delaware River Legislation Advances!

We just heard that the Delaware River Basin Conservation Act (DRBCA) will be included in the Water Resources Development Act of 2016 (WRDA). While nothing in Congress is a sure thing until it happens, based on what we're hearing right now, it is expected that both the House and Senate will approve the WRDA bill by the end of this week and send it to the President's desk for passage into law.

Thanks to everybody who weighed in with their members of Congress to advance this critically important legislation that will help boost the river-based economy of the UDR region, enhance recreational opportunities, support on-the-ground waterway improvement projects that create jobs, and help protect the unique cold water ecosystem of the Upper Delaware River.

We will keep you posted!

 

[krayfish2]

FUDR update:

The Delaware River Basin Conservation Act (DRBCA) was approved by the United States Congress on December 10, 2016 and signed into law by the President this past weekend. The DRBCA establishes, for the first time ever, a nationally recognized program for the entire Delaware River watershed.

The DRBCA will streamline the delivery of national conservation services to the Delaware River watershed and creates a grant program to support on-the-ground projects that restore waterways, create jobs, and boost local economies.

Media representatives and all members of the public are invited to attend this event and learn more about how the DRBCA can benefit communities, people, and the economy of the Upper Delaware River region.

 

[krayfish2]

Positive note: Cannonsville has reached 50% capacity. The recent storm and lack of frozen ground should help to recharge things up that way. Tioga got some decent snows too

 

[outsider]

I know we are all concerned about the trout in the Delaware River, but that pales in comparison to the potential disaster if the salt line reaches the intakes for the water treatment plants in the greater Philadelphia area. These water treatment plants are not equipped to deal with salt water.

In the 70's I was employed by an engineering firm that designed a de-salination plant in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Water was piped from the Persian Gulf. If my memory is correct, everything was made of the highest grade stainless steel. I hope our weather trends change.