Corps begins spring drawdowns in the Red River of the North basin

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is lowering its reservoir elevations within the Red River of the North basin based on recent snow measurements to prepare for potential spring snowmelt.

The Corps is currently lowering the elevation of Lake Ashtabula, located near Valley City, North Dakota. The current elevation is 1,258.7 feet, and it will be further drawn down to 1,257.0 feet in time for spring runoff.

Elevation at Homme Dam, near Park River, North Dakota, is currently at 1,075 feet, and it will be slightly lowered to 1,074 feet before spring runoff.

Reservation Dam, part of the Lake Traverse project, near Wheaton, Minnesota, is currently at 976.1 feet and will be lowered to 974.5 feet by the end of the month. White Rock Dam, also part of the Lake Traverse project, is currently at 1072.1 feet and will hold steady.

Red Lake Dam, near Red Lake, Minnesota, is currently at 1,175.5 feet and will hold steady due to high inflows.

A wet fall has caused above average stream flows for this time of year throughout the basin. River and reservoir levels may change more rapidly as ice forms than they have in the past due to the higher water levels this fall.