12/4/2023
WT Staff
HAPPENING NOW
Drought advances over the weekend
Ohio tributary Racoon -Symmes, Little Miami fall below normal
Up to the minute water news for Monday, December 4, 2023 - last updated 907 am EST
Streamflow Situation from USGS Waterwatch based on real time flow monitors across Ohio
Northwest Ohio west Lake Erie basin streamflows monitors are picking up normal to much below normal values Monday. South of the divide, the Great Miami River basin flows are below normal to much below normal. No extreme high or low flows are registering anywhere in Ohio as of this update.
Drought situation from USGS Waterwatch 7-day average streamflow compared with historic flow for this date
The entire surface area of west Ohio on both sides of the drainage divide are drought rated Monday. Auglaize River watershed remains the deepest drought in the state at the severe rating, shifting to moderate drought where the Auglaize River joins the Maumee River in Defiance County right up to the outlet Maumee Bay.
New on the drought map over the weekend is the Little Miami River watershed, a tributary of the Ohio River connecting the below normal area of Scioto basin with the balace of Great Miami Upper and Lower basin. Returning to the drought map Monday is the Raccoon-Symmes Creek watershed of Middle Ohio tributaries, now connecting the area of Shade River watershed to the northeast with the Brush-White Oak watershed to the southwest making for a contiguous drought-stricken area.
The height-of-land divide in Ohio runs from Mercer County in the west angling northeast up to Ashtabula County on the east state border. Streamflows north of the divide feed Lake Erie, flows south of the divide run to the Ohio River, part of the Mississippi River basin that drains the majority of interior North America to the Gulf of Mexico.
As the drought conditions shift and change in the Ohio River basin, track the effects south down the Mississippi River into to Louisiana, rated "Exceptional Drought", the highest category on the National Drought map. Visit WTLA.us for more information on downstream effects.
Harmful Algal Bloom update based on the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) satellite monitoring program -
NCCOS latest satellite image of west basin Lake Erie was captured November 30 at unknown surface wind speed. This image offers a clear view of Lake Erie open water and bays with some cloud cover along the shorelines.
North Maumee Bay small localized HABs remain along shore from the Erie Marsh preserve on the Michigan shore past Monroe. Maumee Bay small localized HAB remains around the Harbor View Yacht Club with a small HAB remaining on Maumee Bay State park Niles Beach, all late season HABs appearing at moderate 100 thousand cells per 100 ml. USGS streamflow monitor on the Maumee River at Waterville had water temperature less than a degree above freezing last week. The temperature gage is malfunctioning Monday morning.
A small localized HAB seen along shore at Maumee Bay State Park east end of Niles Beach is still visible as of Nov 30 image, with small HABs dotting the shoreline from the east side of Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge, Reno Beach, Metzger Marsh Wildlife Preserve, Magee Marsh, all blooms at 100 thousand cells per 100 ml.
Port Clinton HABs at have expanded up the Portage River channel. Small localized HABs appear along the shore west and east of the raw water intake for the Ottawa County Regional Water system. HABs around Catawba Island have expanded in the inland water bodies West Harbor and East Harbor. A single small localized HAB clings to Cedar Point in the Sandusky Bay area. Small localized HABs appear along the east Lake Erie shore up to Huron with small HABs dispersed throughout open water from Huron to the international border.
This is the last week for mandatory testing for microcystins by drinking water facilities sourced from surface water. More to follow.
Drinking Water matters
West Alexandria appears to be under BWA following repair of a leaking valve last week, update to follow.
NWS Outlook
Sunny skies in Cleveland area Monday give way to snow and possibly rain tomorrow. No hazardous weather advice posted for Ohio as of Monday morning. Dayton, Columbus and Akron have a similar outlook for Tuesday, snow followed by rain. Cincinatti can expect the rain tomorrow without the snow.
Hazardous Spills Hotline updated as reported to OEPA 1-800-282-9378
A search is underway for the latest spill incidents released for Ohio. More to follow.
An unknown amount of blue material is reported spilled into an unnamed water body off Portage Lakes Drive in Akron yesterday. A pond and channel leading into Long Lake is relatively close to the reported spill site, as is North Reservoir and Portage Lake Fishing Pond. OEPA has been asked for details. More to follow.
Anyone with knowledge of a spill is legally obliged to report immediately to local authorities or the OEPA spill hotline, any day of the week at any time. The spiller or responders in control of a spill on site will be ideally follow protocol for containment and handling of hazardous materials to minimize impact on waterways, including preventing escape down storm drains or tile drains. WTOH.us reports spills as the incident reports are released by the OEPA to bring awareness to events with potential to impact drinking water sources.
See the CWA Crimebox for historic criminal convictions involving hazardous spills deliberate and accidental discharges, where the responsible parties have included top level executives and business owners, supervisors and employees, along with the fines, probation and even jail time for knowingly or negligently discharging contaminants without a permit to do so.
WTOH.us brings incident reports as recorded by the Ohio EPA spill line staff, and seeks additional details from Ohio EPA spokespeople as required. Check the pink location tags on the map with the watershed layer, labels and arrows switched on to see the area potentially impacted by the spill.
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