12/6/2023
WT Staff
HAPPENING NOW
Findlay issues BWA
Drought severity downgraded
Up to the minute water news for Wednesday, December 6, 2023 - last updated 1146 am
Drinking Water matters
City of Findlay issued a BWA yesterday, impacting certain connections along South Main and West Sandusky Streets . South Main Street addresses 500, 506, 508, 512, 520 and 524; West Sandusky Street: 103, 117, 119, 119 and a half, and 125 are included in the need to boil water for safety. City of Findlay supplies potable water to over 20 thousand combined residential and wholesale customers with water sourced from the Blanchard River and reservoirs. November 24 testing for microcystins returned a reportable value of .598 micrograms per liter, more than double the minimum reporting level.
Streamflow Situation from USGS Waterwatch based on real time flow monitors across Ohio
Wednesday current streamflows appear to be trending downward, more below normal and much below normal reports from both sides of the drainage divide. No extremes high or low as of this update.
Drought situation from USGS Waterwatch 7-day average streamflow compared with historic flow for this date
The drought map has taken a down-shift in severity overnight with an area in each drainage basin improving. In the Lake Erie basin, the Lower Maumee watershed has shifted from moderate hydrologic drought to below normal. In the Middle Ohio minor tributaries, the Raccoon-Symmes watershed shows below normal today rather than moderate drought.
The overall area rated on the drought map has increased overnight to include the Upper Scioto River watershed Wednesday, coming on with a rating of below normal.
As yesterday, Auglaize River watershed remains in severe drought stance with the surrounding watersheds below normal, excluding Tiffin River, which came off the drought map yesterday. Blanchard River, Upper Maumee, St Josephs, St Marys watersheds are rated below normal as seen Monday and Tuesday.
South of the divide from the Erie West basin, the Great Miami Basin remains entirely below normal. The Paint River watershed, a tributary of the Scioto River is below normal again today, including Fayette, Ross and Highland Counties. Over to the northeast, the Mahoning River watershed of the Upper Ohio Tributaries remains below normal as we saw yesterday. Moving downstream along the Ohio River, all minor tributaries watersheds from the Shade River watershed Meigs and Washington Counties are rated below normal to the west Ohio border.
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 December 4 at undetermined surface wind speed. This image is almost completely cloud obscured, offering a glimpse of HAB activity in open water approximately four miles off shore from Metzger Marsh Wildlife Preserve. The concentration of HABs is a consistent moderate level of 100 thousand cells per 100 ml. The interpretation given on the map and HABs button are from the last clear image available, November 30 capture.
This is the last week for mandatory testing for microcystins by drinking water facilities sourced from surface water.
Ottawa County Regional Water District drawing from the Portage River intake near Port Clinton shows total microcystins at less than the minimum reporting level of .24 micrograms per liter. Celina City total microcystins measured at 3.2 micrograms per liter as of November 26 test, taken from Grand Lake raw water intake. The current and final reporting period of the season ends Dec 9.
Hazardous Spills Hotline updated as reported to OEPA 1-800-282-9378
An unknown amount of blue material was reported spilled into an unnamed water body off Portage Lakes Drive in Akron last week. We inquired of Ohio EPA for more details. OEPA spokesperson Dina Pierce advises, "There was a cloudy blue substance discharging from a storm sewer into Stone Creek in Summit County. The spill was reported to Ohio EPA by an Ohio Department of Natural Resources Portage Lakes State Park employee. The material appeared to be non-toxic. Field sampling indicated that the water chemistry was normal and there was no visible harm to wildlife."
A second incident for which we asked for details was reported in Trotwood recently. The spilled material was described as an unknown white stringy substance. According to OEPA, the material was reported "discharging into a creek from a pond in John Wolfe Park in Trotwood, Montgomery County. Local officials investigated, but did not find evidence of a discharge or spill. Ohio EPA did not respond after getting the local report. The report was called in anonymously and the caller did not leave a call-back number; therefore, no follow-up can be made."
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