The US Army Corps of Engineers says it expects runoff entering the Missouri River will be about 80 percent of normal.
"It's been real dry, a very dry winter, that anybody in North Dakota can attest," said the Corps' Missouri River Water Management Director John Remus. "We don't have a real strong snowpack, either, so we're not looking at very much runoff."
As for the affect on the upper Missouri mainstem reservoirs, including Lake Sakakawea and Lake Oahe, Remus said the lake levels will be lower.
"We've had low lake levels for the last couple of years," Remus said. "They should recover a little bit, from where they were a year ago, but they'll remain lower than average."
Remus said the Corps will be implementing some conservation measures, including reducing the "service level" for downstream navigation.
"What we do, is we don't give them as much water, so they have to load a little bit lighter on their barges," Remus said. "I wouldn't call it a restriction, but they will have to manage a little differently."
Remus said he doesn't think recreation will be affected very much. But he said the low releases from the dams — Fort Peck, Garrison and Oahe — may lead to some water access issues for some irrigators along the river. And he did say this will affect hydropower generation.
"We're looking at maybe 15 percent less than average," Remus said.
The Corps made the presentation of the 2026 plan at stops along the river, including Bismarck.
