USACE Vicksburg District announces Mississippi lakes release operation plan

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Vicksburg District announces the water release operation plans for its Mississippi lakes during March 2022.

As flood season approaches, the district intends to make aggressive release operations to regain storage lost to above average rainfall in the Yazoo Basin this February. All four flood control lakes, Arkabutla, Sardis, Enid, and Grenada, have been impacted.

The current flood control storage for each lake is as follows:

Arkabutla Lake: 40%

Grenada Lake: 27%

Enid Lake: 19%

Sardis Lake 17%

The Vicksburg District’s intent with higher releases is to evacuate flood water captured in February and operate the four projects closer to their respective guide curves. Any storage gained during this operation will be available for use in the typical major planting season starting in April.  The additional flood capacity will allow the district to effectively utilize the four flood control projects and maximize benefits to the public.

To view current lake levels, visit https://www.mvk-wc.usace.army.mil/resrep.htm.

Arkabutla, Sardis, Enid and Grenada lakes, the four Mississippi flood control reservoirs in the Vicksburg District’s area of responsibility, were authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1936, which provided a plan designed to address flooding that originated in the Yazoo Basin. The four reservoirs are used to hold runoff, or excess rainwater, as a flood-prevention measure. With approximately 3 million visitors each year, the north Mississippi lakes also contribute approximately $82 million into the local economy.

The USACE Vicksburg District is engineering solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges. The Vicksburg District encompasses a 68,000-square-mile area across portions of Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana, that holds nine major river basins and incorporates approximately 460 miles of mainline Mississippi River levees. The Vicksburg District is engaged in hundreds of projects and employs approximately 1,100 personnel.