By SooToday.com Staff
SooToday.com
Monday, November 02, 2009

NEWS RELEASE

LAKE SUPERIOR
BOARD OF CONTROL

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Update on Lake Superior outflow

The International Lake Superior Board of Control, under authority granted to it by the International Joint Commission, has set the Lake Superior outflow to 1,790 cubic meters per second (m3/s) (63.2 thousand cubic feet per second (tcfs)) for the month of November, effective November 2.

This is the outflow recommended by the regulation plan for the month of November and is a decrease from the October outflow, which was 1,810 m3/s (63.9 tcfs).

The November outflow will be released by discharging about 1,668 m3/s (58.9 tcfs) through the three hydropower plants and passing most of the remaining flow through the control structure at the head of the St. Marys rapids.

The gate setting of the control structure will be maintained at the existing setting equivalent to one-half gate open (four gates open 20 cm, or about eight inches each).

There will be no change to the setting of Gate #1 that supplies the Fishery Remedial Works.

This past month the water supply to the Lake Superior basin was below normal, while the water supply to the Lakes Michigan-Huron basin was above normal.

Lake Superior is currently 17 cm (seven inches) above its chart datum level.

Currently, the Lake Superior level is about 13 cm (five
inches) below its long-term average beginning-of-November level, and is nine cm (four inches) above the level recorded a year ago.

This past month the level of Lake Superior fell four cm (two inches), while on average it falls three cm (one inch) in October.

The level of Lake Superior is expected to fall in November.

The level of Lakes Michigan-Huron remained steady in October, while on average it falls seven cm (three inches) during October.

The level of Lakes Michigan-Huron is now about nine cm (four inches) below its long-term average beginning-of-November level, and is 29 cm (11 inches) higher than it was a year ago.

Currently Lakes Michigan-Huron is 32 cm (13 inches) above its chart datum level.

The level of Lakes Michigan-Huron is expected to fall in November.

The board continues to monitor conditions both on Lake Superior and downstream and will advise the International Joint Commission accordingly on those conditions.

Major General John W. Peabody, commander, Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is the United States Board Member.

Mr. David Fay is the board member for Canada.

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