This morning the Ashokan Release Channel flow was increased from 300 MGD (464 cfs) to 450 MGD (696 cfs) to help reach the seasonal storage objective and to maintain a combined spill and release flow less than 1000MGD. The turbidity of water in the release channel is 14.9 NTU.
Ashokan Reservoir storage is 101% today. The reservoir started spilling on Sunday and is forecast to continue spilling through Saturday. The Catskill Aqueduct is online diverting 175 MGD for water supply.
The Ashokan Release Channel was reactivated after the stream level at Mount Marion dropped below Action Stage. The current release flow is 300MGD and turbidity is 17.5 ntu.
Ashokan Reservoir storage reached 100% and starting spilling overnight Sunday, January 14th. DEP will monitor the spill and release flow rates to ensure that combined total is less than 1000MGD (1550 cfs), adjusting the release rate accordingly. The Catskill Aqueduct is online diverting 125 MGD for water supply.
DEP will continue to monitor conditions and make additional adjustments pursuant to the IRP.
The Ashokan Release Channel was shut down at 09:00am today, January 13, 2024, with the Mount Marion stream gage reaching action stage of 18ft. The Esopus Creek is expected crest at 19.1 feet. The release channel will be reactivated once stream conditions recede below 18ft.
NYCDEP said it is prepared to shut down the release channel when the Lower Esopus water level rises. The Interim Release Protocol (IRP) stipulates shut down of release channel when creek level is within 1 foot of the “Action Stage” (18′) and is forecasted to reach “Action Stage”, as predicted on the National Weather Service forecast for Mt Marion stream gauge.
The Mount Marion forecast from the National Weather Service predicts the river stage to reach action level overnight Tuesday and peak near 19.9 feet by noon on Wednesday, January 10th.
The Ashokan Release Channel is continuing to operate at its maximum rate of 600 MGD (928 cfs) today and has been operating at this rate since December 22. Ashokan Reservoir storage peaked on December 22 at 99.4% and has been on the decline since. Ashokan Reservoir storage is currently at 93.9%, and the turbidity of the water in the release channel is 15.9 NTU. The Catskill Aqueduct is online and diverting 550 MGD for water supply. The release channel is prepared to shut down when water level reached 17 ft at Mt Marion stream gauge.
For the latest information see the Mt Marion stream gauge.
NYC DEP shut down the Ashokan Release Channel just after 6:00 AM this morning, December 18th. This is due to the Mt Marion USGS gage reaching 17 ft (1 ft below action stage). The flow was reduced from 309 cfs to zero. The release channel will stay closed until the Mt Marion water level falls below action stage and reservoir conditions are assessed. Ashokan Reservoir storage is currently at 90.5% with a 10.9 BG void.
The Ashokan Release Channel was increased today from 520 to approximately 550 MGD. The increases were completed at 2:30PM.
The current release channel turbidity is 8.70 ntu.
NYCDEP Bureau of Water Supply will be increasing the release of water from the Ashokan Reservoir through the Release Channel Saturday December 1st. This increased release has been coordinated with NYSDEC and will not exceed 600 MGD and will last for 3 weeks. The purpose of the increased diversion is to temporarily stop the Schoharie Reservoir from spilling in order to complete the construction of at least one of the two new temporary siphons at Gilboa Dam.
The current release channel turbidity is 9.20 ntu. Releases are scheduled to ramp up in 40 MDG increments hourly, reaching 530 MGD by 4:30PM today.
Turbid releases from Ashokan Reservoir have made headlines in Ulster County for the past year-and-a-half since the NYC Department of Environmental Protection reopened the release channel into the Lower Esopus Creek. Now, the dumping of turbid water has garnered attention in New York City, the beneficiary of the turbid releases in the form of clean drinking water. Writing for the New York Times, Mireya Navarro focuses on how the turbid releases exacerbate the century-old upstate-downstate tensions over the city’s water supply. She writes that long-standing disputes over DEP’s operations in Ulster County have reached a “tipping point.” Read the full article: Muddying of Beloved Creek Is Last Straw for Neighbors of a City Reservoir. Navarro also posted a blog entry about the issue at the NYTimes.com Green Blog: Upstate vs. Downstate: A Slow Boil Over Water Issues.
The Ashokan Release Channel was increased today from 0 to approximately 10 MGD. The increase was made in one movement at 3:55 PM. Releases resumed for this evening and will be turned off tomorrow for continued work.
The Lower Esopus Ashokan Reservoir Release Workshop
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
6:30 – 8:30 pm
@ Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County
In their new Kingston Plaza location at 232 Plaza Road
RSVP cbalmer@rcapsolutions.org
Thank you to all who were able to attend the LEWP-sponsored Lower Esopus Positive Action Workshop at the end of January. We are in the process of confirming and revising the priority projects that were identified during the workshop. One of the major activities we have been pursuing since then is the removal of log/ debris jams along the stream. LEWP is helping coordinate a funding application that is being submitted by Ulster County Soil and Water Conservation District in early April. This funding is for debris sites that did not meet the imminent threat criteria required for funding through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program.
For many of you, the biggest concern is with water quality and quantity associated with releases from the Ashokan Reservoir. LEWP is holding a workshop to provide updates on this issue, including details of NYSDEC/ NYCDEP’s Interim Release Protocol; and to document your concerns and identify community action steps. Please save the date and email RSVP to Candace Balmer cbalmer@rcapsolutions.org.