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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Paul District Public Affairs Office 332 Minnesota St., Suite E1500 St. Paul, MN 55101 Phone: (651) 290-5807 Fax: (651) 290-5752 cemvp-pa@usace.army.mil
WABASHA, Minn. – Bill Chelmowski, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District marine machinery mechanic, uses an ice auger to drill a hole on Lake Pepin, near Wabasha, Minn., Feb. 13, during the first Mississippi River ice surveys of the year. The district conducts the annual ice surveys to help the navigation industry determine when it is safe to break through the ice. Lake Pepin, located on the Mississippi River between Red Wing and Wabasha, Minn., is used as the benchmark because the ice melts slower in this area due to the lake width and the slower current.
WABASHA, Minn. – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District employees Al VanGuilder, left, survey technician, and Bill Chelmowski, marine machinery mechanic, use an airboat to measure ice on Lake Pepin, near Wabasha, Minn., Feb. 13, during the first Mississippi River ice surveys of the year. The district conducts the annual ice surveys to help the navigation industry determine when it is safe to break through the ice. Lake Pepin, located on the Mississippi River between Red Wing and Wabasha, Minn., is used as the benchmark because the ice melts slower in this area due to the lake width and the slower current.
ST. PAUL, Minn. – One of the first signs of spring for the Upper Midwest is here. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, will begin taking this year's annual Lake Pepin ice measurements Feb. 18. The Corps takes ice measurements on Lake Pepin annually to predict the navigational outlook on the Upper Mississippi River. Located on the river between Red Wing, Minnesota, and Wabasha, Minnesota, Lake Pepin is the location of choice for these measurements because it’s the last part of the navigation channel where the ice breaks up due to slower river currents. A survey crew from the Corps’ Fountain City Service Base in Fountain City, Wisconsin, uses an airboat and a global positioning system to identify the exact measurement locations. In addition to measuring the ice thickness, the crew also records the general ice conditions. The data is used by the navigation industry to predict when it's safe to break through the ice and begin the 2015 navigation season. Last year, the Motor Vessel Angela Kay was the first tow to pass through Lake Pepin and make it to St. Paul, Minnesota. She arrived in St. Paul April 14, 2014. The average opening date of the navigation season in St. Paul for the last 10 years is March 24. For many residents who live in the Midwest, the first tow of the season is the unofficial start of spring. Ongoing work at Lock and Dam 5A, near Fountain City, Wisconsin, until March 9, will prevent any up bound tows to reach Lake Pepin until after the construction is complete. Normally, ice measurements are completed weekly until the navigation season begins. The data will be posted on the St. Paul District’s website. For figures on past and present Lake Pepin ice measurements, see: http://www.mvp.usace.mil/Missions/Navigation/IceMeasurements.aspx. The nearly 650 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 Corps’ Fiscal Year 2014 $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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Release no. 15-005
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