Mississippi watershed still in minor drought
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY WATERSHED— The Mississippi Valley Low Water Response Team in conjunction with the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA) is advising residents that despite the rainfall received over the last month, the entire watershed remains at a Level I/Minor status.
“The Mississippi River watershed received an average amount of rainfall for the month of October, bringing most of our precipitation indictors out of drought status,” said MVCA Water Management Supervisor Gord Mountenay. “However, flows in our tributaries and the Mississippi River remain well below normal for this time of year. To put it in perspective, the average flow in the Mississippi River at Fergusons Falls for this time of year is 13 cubic meters per second (cms) – our current flow sits at six cms. So, we are sitting at less than 50 per cent of our normal conditions on the main stem of the river.”
MVCA continues to advise the general public to use extreme caution while out on area waterways for recreational purposes such as hunting and boating.
Water conservation is recommended for everyone within the Mississippi and Carp River watersheds and residents on private wells inside the City of Ottawa boundary. Those who have permits for taking water from surface or groundwater sources are encouraged to reduce their actual taking as much as possible. Residents on private well systems are also urged to use water conservatively.
Residents are strongly urged not to use potable water for building ice rinks and to avoid using pressure washers to clean houses, driveways, decks and fences as we head into the winter months. Municipalities may have invoked water restrictions, so check your municipality’s website for water restriction bylaws. For more water conservation tips visit www.mvc.on.ca.
Daily water levels and flows are available here .
In order to track impacts of the drought conditions within the watershed, we request that any individuals or business within the Mississippi Valley watershed that are experiencing difficulties with their wells please contact the Conservation Authority by calling 613-253-0006 ext. 233 or 243. We have established a survey form on our web site that residents can fill out to assist in documenting the effects of the drought as well. This form is located at: www.mvc.on.ca/lowwatersurvey
Other relevant information sources are:
Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks
Ontario’s Low Water Response program
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
These websites have a variety of information addressing various aspects of crops, livestock, feed, water shortages, etc. during dry and low water conditions.
