Critical Drought Devastates the Mississippi River: A Fight for its Survival
Water levels on the Mississippi River are at historic lows, causing a drinking water crisis in Louisiana With ocean water flowing freely upstream due to weak river flow, the situation is dire No substantial rain is expected in the near future, worsening the situation even further
The Mississippi River is experiencing historically low water levels for the second year in a row. This has led to a drinking water emergency in Louisiana, as ocean water is able to flow upstream without being hindered by the weak river flow. Unfortunately, there is no significant rainfall expected in the near future, so the water levels are predicted to decrease even further in the next few weeks. Water gauges along a stretch of nearly 400 miles, from the mouth of the Ohio River to Jackson, Mississippi, are at or below a critical level. This situation is causing significant disruptions for residents and industries along the river.
All the gauges in the Memphis area rank among the five lowest levels ever recorded, according to Katie Dedeaux, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Memphis. It is anticipated that water levels for certain gauges in southern Missouri to central Mississippi will decrease even more, dropping below the record levels by mid-October.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers crews employ dredges and pipes to transfer silt onto an underwater sill positioned on the bed of the Mississippi River on Friday, September 22, 2023. This location is approximately 20 miles south of New Orleans. The purpose of the sill is to prevent the intrusion of saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico into the river's upstream region.
When will saltwater arrive in New Orleans? Here's what to know
Lower Mississippi River water levels are forecast to continue to drop through at least mid-to-late October, according to Dedeaux.
Dedeaux stated that a substantial duration of rainfall is required across the basin. It is important to note that a single heavy rain event cannot resolve the issue. Instantaneous resolution is not feasible. This predicament could pose a threat to the residents of four Louisiana parishes, including New Orleans, as their water systems are at risk due to the intrusion of salty ocean water from the north.
A confluence of extremes
According to Col. Cullen Jones, commander of the Army Corps New Orleans office, in order to push the saltwater back, it is necessary to have 10 inches of precipitation throughout the entire Mississippi Valley. However, this relief may not arrive until this winter.The water levels on the Mississippi River started to decrease in early September, much earlier than the drop experienced in October of the previous year. According to Dedeaux, the successive occurrence of these dry spells has hindered the river's capacity to replenish itself.
Extensive portions of the Mississippi River watershed experienced a scarcity of substantial rainfall during the summer months. This occurrence can be attributed to the persistent presence of heat domes, which generated remarkable temperatures and diverted precipitation away from the southern and central regions of the United States.
The low water level of the Mississippi River is seen as people sit on steps that normally meet the river in the French Quarter of New Orleans on Sept. 25, 2023.
Gerald Herbert/AP
Louisiana experienced its hottest and third-driest summer on record, with over 90% of the state facing severe or exceptional drought - the highest level not seen since 2011. Exceptional drought, fueled by intense heat, also affected areas of Mississippi, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Kansas, and Iowa. Consequently, parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Mississippi, and Louisiana had a rainfall deficit of 2 to 8 inches compared to the normal seasonal precipitation, according to NOAA data. In certain regions of Louisiana, the shortfall even exceeded 10 inches of the typical summer rainfall.
The shortage of rainfall in the southern region of the watershed can be attributed, in part, to the absence of hurricane activity in the area over the past two hurricane seasons. Louisiana and Mississippi have not experienced any tropical systems that could bring heavy rainfall, leading to a shortfall in precipitation. Despite the usual low levels of the Mississippi River in October and November, these factors have resulted in significant deficits in rainfall throughout the Mississippi watershed, causing the water levels to drop drastically below the normal range, according to Alexis Highman from the Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center as reported by CNN.
When will water levels rebound?
The Climate Prediction Center's outlook indicates potential improvement in drought conditions for many areas along the Mississippi River, which are currently experiencing a severe lack of rainfall. The recent drought outlook released by the Climate Prediction Center suggests that there is some hope for relief in the long term. However, it also notes that the drought conditions in the Mississippi Valley are not expected to be completely eliminated by the end of the year.
The above-normal precipitation chances over the next three months in the South are also a result of an ongoing El Niño, which tends to bring increased rainfall during winters.
But an El Niño winter may be a double-edged sword, as portions of the northern Plains and Midwest tend to say drier than average.
Improved precipitation chances are forecasted for the southern regions of the lower Mississippi River by the Climate Prediction Center through the conclusion of the year. The drier conditions could potentially impact rivers such as the Missouri and the Ohio, thereby restricting the overall amount of water flowing into the Mississippi.
Dedeaux informed CNN that the lower Mississippi River receives 60% of its water from the Ohio River, with the remaining 40% originating from the upper Mississippi River. CNN Meteorologist Brandon Miller provided additional insights for this report.
