Water levels low in Deh Cho
Mayor Sean Whelly says there will be issues with the ferry if dry conditions persist
April Hudson
Northern News Services
Thursday, July 16, 2015
LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
Waters in the Mackenzie and Liard rivers remain lower than normal thanks to little precipitation and the lack of a normal June surge from the spring melt.
Low water in the Mackenzie and Liard rivers could affect ferry operations. In 2012, the MV Lafferty ferry beached on a sandbar overnight after water levels dropped too low. - April Hudson/NNSL photo
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Records from the Water Survey of Canada show data from the Mackenzie River at Fort Simpson and the Liard River at Fort Liard. Records show that on July 13, the Mackenzie River sat at just below five metres in depth - more than a metre lower than at the same time in 2013.
Between 2001 and 2013, the lowest level the Mackenzie hit at this time of year was 5.9 metres in 2010.
Meanwhile, water flow has also drastically reduced. The Mackenzie's discharge was approximately 7,500 cubic metres per second on July 13, down from around 11,000 in 2013.
As for the Liard, on July 13 the river's level sat at just over 3.5 metres, down from more than 4.3 metres in 2013.
Records dating back to 2002 show 2013 as the lowest recorded year, until now, and water flow has been cut in half from 5,200 cubic metres per second on July 13, 2013 to 2,075 this year.
Fort Simpson Mayor Sean Whelly said he has noticed water levels sitting about a metre lower than usual but said it is not affecting reservoir levels for residents.
Fort Simpson's water treatment plant draws water from the bottom of the river, meaning it would need to virtually dry up before it affects the village's water supply. Whelly said that plant usually stores around one million litres of processed, treated water.
"The river waters are comparatively lower than in previous years ... but even if something happened to our water line or the plant broke down, we wouldn't be immediately out of water," Whelly said.
"We would have maybe 10 days of normal water use, and we could probably stretch that out if we went into water conservation mode."
Whelly said the spring melt from the mountains usually bumps up water levels for a week or so.
"You almost get a miniature flood go through here, always at the beginning of June. But we didn't really see that this year," he said.
"I think that spring melt basically happened about the same time as spring breakup because it was so warm. We didn't get that wave of water."
While water levels are not currently affecting the MV Lafferty ferry, Whelly said that could grow to be a concern if levels continue to fall. Normally, the ferry shuts down when the water gets to 1.6 metres or less.
"There's a ridge that runs down the middle of the Liard right where the ferry is operating," he said.
"There are going to be issues with the ferry if we don't get some more rain, but it's a little early to panic about the ferry and the low water because a lot of things can happen. We could even still have floodwaters if it rained for a few days up in the mountains - it can be surprising, how fast it can come up."
Nahendeh MLA Kevin Menicoche said he has not heard many concerns from residents about the low water levels, aside from concerns about the forest fire season.
However, he said that low water levels have in the past translated to higher energy costs as the amount of electricity produced from hydro dams decreases.
In 2014, low water levels in the Snare Hydro System caused a spike in rates and forced the government to shell out $20 million in January 2015 to offset the cost of diesel fuel required to back up the lagging system.
"If there's another situation like that, I'm pretty sure the government will face increased costs for power generation," Menicoche said, adding that increased diesel costs translate into an increased base rate in Yellowknife.
"When (that happens), that means all the rates in the outlying communities go up," he said.
In June, Water Survey of Canada hydrometrics supervisor Roger Pilling confirmed water levels in the Mackenzie River were at record lows.
The territorial Department of Environment and Natural Resources referred all questions to Environment Canada. Environment Canada declined a request for an interview.
