Corps makes progress at Lac Qui Parle Dam

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, completed the first phase of repairs to a hole under the abutment at the Lac Qui Parle Dam, located on the Minnesota River in west-central Minnesota, near Watson, Minnesota, this week.

The Corps will begin lowering the Lac Qui Parle pool to the winter drawdown levels now that the initial repairs are complete. The current pool level is at elevation 935.18 feet. The winter drawdown elevation is 934.0 feet.

The outflow from the dam is expected to be around 2,400 cubic feet per second, or cfs. Normal outflows for December average 200-300 cfs. Despite the Corps’ continued higher than average releases, the water coming into the lake remains high.

The Corps is monitoring the potential for storms this weekend and may need to make adjustments based on the amount of moisture received within the basin. Due to the continued weather-related changes within the basin, the Corps cautions everyone near the ice to exercise extreme caution since the flow of water may rapidly change the ice conditions.  |

The nearly 600 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, employees working at more than 40 sites in five upper-Midwest states serve the American public in the areas of environmental enhancement, navigation, flood damage reduction, water and wetlands regulation, recreation sites and disaster response. Through the St. Paul District Fiscal Year 2015 $100 million budget, nearly 1,600 non-Corps jobs were added to the regional economy as well as $155 million to the national economy. For more information, see www.mvp.usace.army.mil.

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