Lower Colorado River Operations Schedule
Note: You may now view this report with near real-time data at this link. The link is updated hourly with our most recent operations data and operational projections.
Releases from Davis and Parker dams will vary from about 4,300 cubic feet per second
(cfs) to 21,000 cfs during a 24-hour period. River levels will vary during the 24-hour
periods with the higher levels coinciding with periods of peak hydroelectric power
generation. Levels below the dams are usually highest during the afternoon and early
evening. Average daily releases may vary in response to changing conditions.
Average daily releases and midnight lake elevations for the week, as well as
anticipated averages for the following 2 weeks, are scheduled as follows:
Parker Davis Hoover
Dam Lake Dam Lake Dam Lake
Average Havasu Average Mohave Average Mead
Release Elev. Release Elev. Release Elev.
Date (cfs) (ft) (cfs) (ft) (cfs) (ft)
----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Oct 2 8900 448.0 9800 638.6 7500 1065.8
Oct 3 9000 447.9 9800 638.4 7500 1065.8
Oct 4 8400 447.9 10000 638.1 7500 1065.8
Oct 5 5800 448.2 10400 637.9 7500 1065.8
Oct 6 8800 448.2 10300 637.6 7500 1065.8
Oct 7 8700 448.2 9900 637.4 7500 1065.8
Oct 8 8800 448.2 9900 637.2 6900 1065.8
Average 8300 10000 7400
Oct 9 to
Oct 15 7700 448.2 9200 635.3 6200 1066.1
Oct 16 to
Oct 22 7300 448.2 8800 635.2 9000 1065.9
Current Lake Powell storage is 8,792 thousand acre-feet (KAF) (38 percent of capacity).
Lake Mead storage is 8,893 KAF (34 percent of capacity). Total system storage is 25,318
KAF (43 percent of capacity). Lake Powell elevation is 3,573.60 feet.
The observed April-July unregulated inflow for the Colorado River is 10.62 million acre-feet or 166 percent of average.
Yesterday, the average Colorado River flows were 933 cfs near the Yuma Fourth Avenue
Bridge and 1,303 cfs at the Northerly International Boundary. The average release from
Painted Rock Dam was 0 cfs and Alamo Dam was 20 cfs. The Morelos Dam diversions for the
week of 02-Oct-2023 are expected to be 852 cfs.
ALL RIVER USERS should remember that fluctuating river flows may conceal or create
natural hazards such as moving sandbars, gravel bars, unstable riverbanks, floating or
submerged debris, or other unfamiliar obstacles. Caution should be exercised while using
the river between Davis Dam and the Mexican Border at San Luis, Arizona.
This Schedule can now be accessed on the Internet at:
www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/hourly/rivops.html
Last updated: 28-Sep-2023
Please contact the Water Operations Control Center via e-mail at bcoowaterops@usbr.gov or via phone at (702) 293-8373 for additional questions or information.