Monitoring Reports

During periods of drought, the Cooperative Water Supply Operations on the Potomac (CO-OP) helps manage the Washington metropolitan area water supply system by coordinating withdrawals from the Potomac River and off-river reservoirs and recommending releases from upstream reservoirs when forecasted flow in the river is not sufficient to meet expected needs. These needs include water demands and an environmental flow-by of 100 million gallons per day (MGD) on the Potomac River at Little Falls dam near Washington, D.C.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Wednesday 09/25/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Wed, 09/25/2013 - 09:00

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No precipitation fell in the basin yesterday and there is no rainfall predicted over the next three days.

Daily Flows:
Little Falls gage flow 09/24: 1290 MGD (1990 cfs)
Little Falls gage flow 09/25: 1250 MGD (est., based on recently available real time data) (1940 cfs)
Note: Gage flow at Little Falls is measured after water supply withdrawals.
Point of Rocks flow 09/24: 1220 MGD (1880 cfs)
Point of Rocks flow 09/25: 1200 MGD (est., based on recently available real time data) (1860 cfs)

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Tuesday 09/24/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Tue, 09/24/2013 - 09:00

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Point of Rocks flow is 1820 cfs. No significant precipitation fell in the basin yesterday. Over the next 72-hours, the National Weather Service predicts no rainfall throughout the basin.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Monday 09/23/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Mon, 09/23/2013 - 09:00

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Point of Rocks flow is 1890 cfs. Over the past 24-hours, the basin received 0.1 to 0.25 inches of precipitation. Over the next 72-hours, the National Weather Service predicts zero inches of precipitation.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Friday 09/20/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Fri, 09/20/2013 - 09:00

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No significant precipitation fell in the basin yesterday. Over the next 72-hours, the National Weather Service predicts 1 to 2.25 inches of rain throughout the basin with heaviest rain expected around central Maryland.

Due to the expected rainover the weekend, we are temporarily discontinuing daily monitoring on Saturday and Sunday and will resume on Monday.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Thursday 09/19/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Thu, 09/19/2013 - 09:00

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Measured flows at Point of Rocks continue to decrease as of this morning. According to USGS, the grasses around the Point of Rocks gage are starting to die off, resulting in less backwater. USGS plans to conduct on-site measurements bi-weekly while low flow conditions persist.

No precipitation fell in the basin yesterday. Over the next 72-hours, the National Weather Service predicts 0.5 to 1.25 inches of rainfall throughout the basin with most areas expecting approximately 0.75 inches.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Wednesday 09/18/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Wed, 09/18/2013 - 09:00

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No significant precipitation fell in the basin yesterday. Over the next 72-hours, the National Weather Service predicts a chance of up to a quarter inch of rain in the southwestern portion of the basin.

Daily Potomac flow and demand update (Thursday 09/26/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Fri, 09/06/2013 - 09:00

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Trace amounts to half an inch of rain fell in the central part of the basin over the last 24 hours. No rain is predicted for the next 72 hours.

Daily Flows:
Little Falls gage flow 09/25: 1290 MGD (2000 cfs)
Little Falls gage flow 09/26: 1280 MGD (est., based on recently available real time data) (1980 cfs)
Note: Gage flow at Little Falls is measured after water supply withdrawals.
Point of Rocks flow 09/25: 1200 MGD (1850 cfs)
Point of Rocks flow 09/26: 1160 MGD (est., based on recently available real time data) (1800 cfs)

DROUGHT EXERCISE - Afternoon simulated Potomac flow and demand update (Tuesday 08/27/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Tue, 08/27/2013 - 14:00

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This afternoon's report concludes the 2013 CO-OP drought exercise. Our thanks and appreciation goes out to everyone who participated in the exercise!

DROUGHT EXERCISE - Afternoon simulated Potomac flow and demand update (Monday 08/26/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Mon, 08/26/2013 - 14:00

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SIMULATED: Flow is currently holding steady. There are no changes to recommended utility operations this afternoon.

THE FLOWS, DEMANDS, AND DISCHARGES REPORTED BELOW REFLECT ACTUAL CONDITIONS:

DROUGHT EXERCISE - Afternoon simulated Potomac flow and demand update (Sunday 08/25/2013)

Submitted by admin1 on Sun, 08/25/2013 - 14:00

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(SIMULATED CONDITIONS AND OPERATIONS:) Natural flow in the river has continued to rise, due to the arrival today of the North Branch reservoir release, and flow at Little Falls is currently at 263 cfs (170 MGD). Because of the improvement in flow conditions, Washington Aqueduct will be shifting a portion of its withdrawal back to its Great Falls intake this afternoon.