Minimum Flow Update

[Danoinark]

From the Baxter Bulletin:

Omnibus bill holds funds for TL Area

FRANK WALLIS

Bulletin Staff Writer

Leaders and advocates of Arkansas State University Mountain Home and the White River Minimum Flow Project were joyful Wednesday with the prospect of nearly $935,000 for work at five dams on north Arkansas rivers.

The money, if approved by President Bush, will come by way of a federal omnibus spending bill passed back and forth between the Senate and House this week before the House finally approved the measure Wednesday. The president's approval is likely. The Democratic-controlled House finalized the bill with some bitter objections to $70 billion for U.S. military operations grafted into it by the Senate.

Forrest Wood, founder of Ranger Boats at Flippin and a leader in the minimum flow initiative, said Wednesday the money will hopefully be enough to make necessary changes at five dams involved in the Minimum Flow Project.

"This is tremendously important because it's construction money," said Wood. "This will get us past the hurdle, that is, construction, to actually put minimum flow to work.

"I know it's what's best for the most people. I know it's what's best for Arkansas Game and Fish in their work to keep the fisheries in the rivers healthy," Wood said. "Minimum flow will make the rivers a little bigger at times when we really need it."

Wood said the state's entire congressional delegation has been "sensitive and steadfastly dedicated to funding for minimum flow."

The Minimum Flow Project objective, when complete, will increase flows, measured in cubic feet per second, from the five federal dams on the White River System as follows:

# Beaver — from 34 to 135

# Table Rock — from 80 to 400

# Bull Shoals — from 160 to 800

# Norfork — from 110 to 300

# Greers Ferry — from 60 to 200.

Bull Shoals, the biggest dam on the river system, is capable of releases up to 24,000 cubic feet per second when generating electricity at maximum capacity, according to the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission.

U.S. Rep. Marion Berry, D-Ark., said Wednesday that he, too, objected to the sheer volume of the omnibus bill, but he's pleased with the apparent outcome for the Twin Lakes Area and Arkansas.

"It's the first time in a number of years that we have produced a general funding omnibus bill without a continuing resolution," said Berry. "We didn't have one of these at all last year."

The massive $555 billion package contains funding for an array of other Arkansas projects.

The bill contains also about $130 million for maintenance and operations of various federal dams, properties and waterways in the state, including $5.36 million for Norfork Lake and $6.35 million for Bull Shoals Lake.

[Phil Lilley]

Getting the work done initially is one thing... upkeep and maintenance is another. The Corp at one time said we'd (Table Rock Tailwater) had to come up with $200-300,000 annually... WE would have to cause they weren't interested or wouldn't/couldn't- whatever.

But getting this money is a good step. Not sure if MDC, though, is in step with AF&G. I think Ark is ahead in the game.

[Danoinark]

The other question I have is how do they intend to provide Minimum flow with only 900k that is listed. I don't think you could retrofit any of the dams for that price. Also what would 400 cfs look like on Taney as opposed to low water 80 cfs?

[snagged in outlet 3]

I didn' think minimum flow would help anything? Just pumping out more water that doesn't have enough oxygen to begin with, won't help will it? I understand the temp issue but I thought DO was a bigger problem?

Phil made a comment in one of his posts about the hatchery injecting O2. Does the dam at Taney have that capability or is it just the hatchery? I don't want to sound negative, since anything that helps our waters is a step in the right direction.

SIO3

[Phil Lilley]

The hatchery's new system injects o2- they used to use stacks which couldn't be adjusted or regulated. The Crop at the dam have been injecting o2 for years and will continue. This will not help the DO issue at any of the tailwaters. That's a whole new system.

I'll see if I find the flow pics I took when they were looking at the flows several years ago.

[Danoinark]

Snagged..here is a post I made months back about a discussion I had with the hatchery on how the dam handles DO by using a venting system....Dano

I talked with Bill Murphy the assistant hatchery manager at Tablerock and he was very informative about the O2 requirements. He says alot depends on the size and quality of the fish, but he thinks 5 parts per million of do is the low end of the spectrum. Although that doesn't mean the fish would be adversley effected at some levels below 5. He says he gets concerned at the hatchery if it gets below 6 and will increase the O2 content by adjusting the flow of the runs. He says in a natural environment like Taney there is no concern over to much oxygen. As to the "vents" Bill says the dam has ways of taking in air (atmosphere) and using that to help increase the O2 or they can use liquid O2 for the process.

[snagged in outlet 3]

I guess I'm cornfused. Phil says, " The Crop at the dam have been injecting o2 for years and will continue. This will not help the DO issue at any of the tailwaters." So they do inject o2 for the water coming through the generators? If so, why doesn't it help?

I would love to see the flow pics.

SIO3

[Phil Lilley]

Sorry- the minimum flow issue won't help the DO issue on Taneycomo. I didn't make myself clear.

I posted the minimum flow article on the Taneycomo forum.

[Dave Cook]

I just can't get over the feeling the minimum flow levels are designed to benefit boaters over waders.

Maybe it's because I'm a wader.

[taxidermist]

I think its easier to fix than throwing money at it.

Why not require one generator to be running 24/7 This power can be diverted to the lines and sent where needed, reducing the amount of coal burned maybe even locally as Jame River plant or the Newark Ar plant.

I dont think its for boaters, Years ago I had a 1950 study outlining how BSD would have to be used for the trout project, since the cold water kills of most of the warm water fish..

Somewhere in the National Archives must be the study book.

Now back to the boaters, most of the guides know the river and can pretty well move around even in the lowest water we have had lately. Or just move to a hole launch where they can move up river or simply float down river.

At low water I can go down stream fromt he BS State park near the first jetty. I see some guides putting in there too.

So is flow standrads for the boaters? or is it for the fish to increase the amounts of food available?

We all know in the winter shad go thru the turbines, maybe this would increase the shad kill and that will increase the fish eating and growing larger.

I know from the past three year I have been heavily pursuing trout I have seen as the shad kill increases and the fish near to the dam slow on feeding that even down river the fish start getting a few shad then more shad and the winter sizes go up a good bit.

If flow standards can be funded then studies can be done and rpove or disprove the flow standard theory.

John