NAVAJO – As a result of improved stream flow conditions, Reclamation decreased the release from Navajo Reservoir to 500 cubic feet per second (cfs) on Tuesday, October 20th . Releases are made for the authorized purposes of the Navajo Unit, and to attempt to maintain a target base flow through the endangered fish critical habitat reach of the San Juan River (Farmington to Lake Powell).
The San Juan River Basin Recovery Implementation Program recommends a target base flow of between 500 cfs and 1,000 cfs through the critical habitat area. The target base flow is calculated as the weekly average of gaged flows throughout the critical habitat area, therefore daily flows of less than 500 cfs may occur at some gages.
Pending significant changes in the weather and stream flow conditions, the reservoir release will likely remain at 500 cfs until next spring (2010).
Precipitation for the month of October in the San Juan River basin was about 80 percent of average. Unregulated inflow into Navajo Reservoir during the month of October was 15,200 acre-feet, or 34 percent of average. Currently, the daily reservoir inflow is averaging about 250 cfs. Diversions for NIIP have currently been shut down for the winter. The reservoir water surface elevation is at 6054.39 feet, which corresponds to a storage content of about 1,278,000 acre-feet. To view the most current reservoir elevation, content, inflow and release, click on: Navajo Reservoir Data.
The unregulated reservoir inflow into Navajo Reservoir during water year 2009 was recorded at 744,000 acre-feet, or about 68 percent of average. The reservoir had a seasonal peak elevation of 6073.01 feet on May 28, 2009. Navajo Reservoir also provided a spring peak hydrograph of 5,000 cfs during the fist week of June.
A public meeting on Navajo Reservoir operations was held on Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. in Farmington, New Mexico. At this meeting, review of last summer and fall reservoir operations, and plans for this winter and spring 2010 operations will be discussed. These are open forum discussions on the operation of Navajo Reservoir with many interested groups participating. Anyone interested in the general operation of the reservoir is encouraged to attend. Please contact Pat Page in Reclamation's Durango, Colorado Office at (970) 385-6560 for information about these meetings or the daily operation of Navajo Reservoir. To view minutes from the last Navajo Operations Meeting, click on: Meeting Notes.
Paul Davidson
Updated November 13, 2009
Email comments/inquires to: ResourceMgr@usbr.gov