Copyrights : International St. Lawrence River Board of Control

The International St. Lawrence River Board of Control (Board) met on March 23-24 and discussed current and anticipated conditions, and decided to modify the outflow strategy announced on March 12. In view of the water level conditions throughout the Great Lakes, the Board decided its long-term strategy is to closely follow the regulation plan. For the short-term, the strategy will be:

1. Outflows will generally be in accordance with those specified by Plan 1958-D;
2. Outflows may be reduced if necessary to prevent flooding in the Montreal area. Any such underdischarge will be kept on Lake Ontario for future use.

The strategy will be followed until the Board’s April 14 teleconference when conditions will again be reviewed.

The Board considered the following factors (among others) in its strategy considerations:

► On March 22, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron were 19 cm (7.5 inches) and 44 cm (17 inches) below average, respectively. Lake Erie was 11 cm (4.3 inches) below average and 16 cm (6.3 inches) above last year. Lake Erie is expected to remain below average throughout the next 6 months.

► On March 22, Lake Ontario was at elevation 74.73 m (245.18 ft). This was 2 cm (0.8 inch) above average and 36 cm (14.2 inches) above last year. The Lake had been slowly falling from mid-January to early March, but has since begun its seasonal rise. This level is also 64 cm (2.1 ft) below the upper regulation limit, and 58 cm (1.9 ft) above the lower regulation limit that applies during the navigation season.

► The level of Lake Ontario is expected to rise to about 74.96 m (245.93 ft) by the end of June. The end-of-June level would then be about 8 cm (3.1 inches) below average and 41 cm (16.1 inches) below the upper regulation limit. If very wet or very dry conditions prevail between now and the end of June, the water level could be 21 cm (8.3 inches) higher or 22 cm (8.7 inches) lower, respectively, than the expected level of 74.96 m (245.93 ft). The risk of exceeding the upper regulation limit is extremely low.

► The below-average levels of Lake Erie will produce below-average inflows to Lake Ontario over the next 6 months.

► Downstream conditions were noted: On March 22 Lake St. Louis was 18 cm (7.1 inches) below average but 48 cm (1.6 ft) above last year; Montreal Harbour was 60 cm (2.0 ft.) below average but 70 cm (2.3 ft) above last year.

► The water content of the Lake Ontario basin snow pack was estimated to be about 117 % of the average in early March, and the Ottawa River basin snow pack was close to average.

The Board, in conjunction with its staff, will continue to monitor the situation and act accordingly. This information can also be found on the Board web site (see below) and will be updated as required.

The International Joint Commission was created under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 to help prevent and resolve disputes over the use of waters along the Canada-United States boundary. Its responsibilities include approving certain projects that would change water levels on the other side of the boundary, such as the international hydropower project at Massena, New York and Cornwall, Ontario. When it approves a project, the Commission’s Orders of Approval may require that flows through the project meet certain conditions to protect interests in both countries. For more information, visit the Commission’s website at www.ijc.org.

The International St. Lawrence River Board of Control was established by the International Joint Commission, mainly to ensure that outflows from Lake Ontario meet the requirements of the Commission’s Orders of Approval. For more information, visit the Board’s website at www.islrbc.org.

For Release: April 1st, 2004

Contacts:

Reg Golding, Ottawa, Ontario (613) 998-1408

John Kangas, Chicago, Illinois (312) 353-4333