Reservoirs are near the full level and Drawdown could begin soon.
The Trent-Severn Water Management Team has posted their first “Water Level Management Update” of the summer – click here.
The reservoir lakes are now at their full level or close to it. However there has been significantly less than normal precipitation through May and June and the rainfall distribution has been quite spotty. River flows in the reservoirs are already at minimum flows. The Otonobee River through Peterborough is also at minimum flow. This is a very different situation than we faced last year when very high rainfall amounts in early May set up high water levels throughout the summer months.
This now means that if we do not soon receive significant precipitation over the Trent watershed it is likely that drawdown of the reservoirs will begin in the very near future.
The new TSW InfoNet website is an excellent source of current water level information – click here. You can see the levels in graphical form as well as view a table of data which allows you to track how quickly levels are changing. TSW has also indicated that once the drawdown begins they will be posting regular water level forecasts for the reservoir lakes.