For decades, Pembina County residents have had to deal with flooding caused by a 30-mile-long dike on the Manitoba side of the international boundary.

This link includes a presentation and images that provide insight into this onging problem - [More] . . .

Water Resource Conditions

• NWS: Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service - Eastern ND
• NWS: Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service - Western ND
• USGS: WaterWatch
• USGS: WaterWatch (Google Earth Streamflow KML Downloads)
• USACE: Red River Basin Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data
• USACE: Missouri River Reservoir Water Levels
• Garrison Dam Releases

Assistance and Recovery

• FEMA: Applying For Assistance
• FEMA: After the Flood
• Federal Individual Disaster Assistance
• ND Department of Health: Flood Cleanup Health and Safety Information

General Flood-related Information

• ND Department of Emergency Services
• NDSU Extension Services

The ND Water Education Foundation is again offering one-day water tours, for a firsthand look at North Dakota's critical water issues:

June 16 - Tile Drainage Tour

June 24 - Devils Lake Solutions

July 8 - Red River of the North: Simply Grand!

July 29 - North Central North Dakota: A Four Season Playground

August 13 - Missouri River Expedition

August 19 - Splendor of the Sheyenne

For more information, or to register for a tour, call the North Dakota Water Education Foundation at (701) 223-8332, or go to www.ndwater.com.

The SWC's construction crew recently received a formal letter of thanks and an award of recognition from the USGS for their contributions toward the Discovery Farms Project. The construction crew includes members Dan Bahm, John Edwards, and Darron Nichols. The purpose of the Discovery Farms project is to have local, state, and federal natural resource agencies cooperate with working farm and ranch operations to implement best management practices to reduce environmental impacts, while maintaining farm profitability. North Dakota's project involves two cattle and grain operations near Underwood and Dazey, and a cropping operation with drain-tile fields near Embden. The construction crew's role in the project was to assist with the construction of data collection shelters at each of the sites. In their letter of thanks, the USGS said of the SWC's construction crew, "because of their background and knowledge in construction and expertise in working in water-related settings, their input and suggestions during the construction phase were invaluable."

The Water Commission recently completed a new 2009 North Dakota State Water Management Plan (SWMP). The overall purpose of the new SWMP is to: provide information regarding current and projected water use; identify areas where water is generally available for new beneficial uses; identify goals and objectives for water resource management and development; identify potential water resource management and development projects and programs; provide current information regarding the Water Commission's revenue sources for water project development; serve as a formal request for funding from the Resources Trust Fund; and broadly identify water resource management and development opportunities and challenges, and provide recommendations to address them.

To download a copy of the State Water Management Plan or the Executive Summary, click here. To request a hard copy of the SWMP, call (701) 328-4989, or e-mail dschock@nd.gov.

The 2009-2011 State Water Commission and Office of the State Engineer Strategic Plan has been completed. The new Strategic Plan contains descriptions and overviews of the agency's major projects and programs. To develop the 2009-2011 Strategic Plan, project and program managers were asked to provide input regarding their expectations for future progress through June 30, 2011. As part of that effort, they were asked to provide project and/or program objectives that they will strive to accomplish during the strategic planning timeframe, as well as specific tasks that will be completed to achieve their objectives.

To request a hard copy of the plan, call (701) 328-4989, or e-mail dschock@nd.gov. Click here to download a PDF of the plan.

For the latest Missouri River main stem reservoir forecast information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, click here.

The draft 2008-09 Annual Operating Plan for the Missouri River has been released by the Army Corps of Engineers for public comment. The plan presents information on the anticipated regulation of the Missouri River main stem reservoir system for 2009 and the remainder of 2008. The draft 2008-09 Plan with a detailed description of the spring pulses is available on the "Reports and Publications" section of the Corps' Water Management website.

The Missouri River basin states and tribes have formed a new organization, to be used as a forum for dialogue on Missouri River basin issues. The Missouri River Association of States and Tribes (MoRAST) is a regional interstate organization formed by joint resolution of the governors of North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas, and the Intertribal Water Rights Coalition. People interested in monitoring the activities of this organization can visit their website at www.mo-rast.org. Presentation materials from previous meetings are available and should prove informative concerning key issues facing the basin.

The Fox Hills-Hell Creek aquifer is a vital source of water for livestock, domestic, municipal, and industrial uses in western North Dakota. The aquifer is artesian, which allows wells in low-lying areas to flow. The pressure in the aquifer is declining at an average rate of approximately one foot per year. If the current trend continues, a majority of the flowing wells installed in the aquifer will stop flowing within the next 60-90 years.

On a ten-year frequency, the State Water Commission monitors flowing well pressure changes in the aquifer and publishes the results in three reports. In association with each report, brochures titled: Flowing Well Pressure Changes in 1) Billings, Golden Valley, and Slope Counties, 2) McKenzie County, and 3) the Knife River Basin were recently published.

The pressure in the Fox Hills-Hell Creek aquifer may be declining at a rate greater than is necessary. Conservation of the pressure is essential for maximizing the life of the flowing wells. Procedures to minimize pressure decline are described in the brochures.

To download a brochure, click here: Flowing Well Brochures. To download a report, click on Water Resource Investigations and choose WRI No 42, WRI No 43, or WRI No 44. For more information or to request brochures, contact Rex Honeyman, SWC Hydrologist, at 701-328-2754 or by e-mail at rhoneyman@nd.gov.