9/17/2024
WT Staff
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September 17, 2024 1055 am EDT
Extreme drought in the southeast
Streamflow Situation from the USGS network of streamflow gauges in Ohio
An extended period of much below normal to low water levels has delivered an extreme drought rating for Ohio River minor tributary Shade River watershed today. The extreme drought impacts Meigs County, bordered by the Hocking River watershed, persisting in a state of severe drought through Hocking and Athens Counties. Downstream Ohio River tributary Raccoon-Symmes and the Scioto basin's Tygarts watersheds have escalated to moderate drought, this rating covering Lawrence to east Scioto County. North of the drainage divide, severe drought hangs on Lower Maumee River watershed with moderate drought adjacent upstream in the Auglaize River watershed, and west in the Tiffin River watershed. Blanchard, Sandusky and Cuyahoga River watersheds remain at the below normal rating Tuesday, now joined by Ashtabula-Chagrin watershed, also below normal. As of this report, the Upper Scioto, Upper and Lower Great Miami River, Ohio minor tributaries Shenango, Mahoning, Brush-Whiteoak and Laughery watersheds remain unrated on the drought map.
WT HAB Tracker from the satellite monitoring program of the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science(NCCOS), Cyanobacteria Assessment Network (CyAN) and State sources where available
Lake Erie west basin
The latest picture from NCCOS satellite program snapped Sep 16 at wind speed 10.7 mph, another lovely clear view of the west basin Lake Erie HAB. Wind is a factor for potential underestimation of the HAB area and extent. The parts we can see here are just immense, the total surface area of the Maumee Bay HAB appears 100 nm square, the highest concentration again found in Maumee Bay State Park, up to 2 million cells per ml along the beach in the west half of the park. Sandusky Bay Aphanizomenon bloom remains widespread east and west of OH-269 at concentration 600 to 700 thousand cells per ml on both sides of OH-269. Dense widespread HAB on the open water side of Sandusky's Cedar Point is 200 to 300 thousand cells per ml, extending past Kelleys Island up to and wrapping around Pelee Island, this mass occupies a much larger surface area than the Maumee Bay HAB, though less dense and less concentrated. See the NCCOS image here.
Find the US EPA national beach advisories dashboard, here.
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