Reservoir Storage & Flood in US

Task force recommends better planning, regulations to deal with flooding

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

By BRUCE A. SCRUTON

bscruton@njherald.com

While noting there will always be floods on the Delaware River, a governors' task force study released Tuesday calls for a full evaluation of how the various reservoirs on the upper tributaries of the river could be operated to reduce flooding. Noting the public's perception that the floods of the past three years would have been less severe if New York City's reservoir system had not been at capacity, the report calls for releases which would reduce the likelihood and volume of spills during storm events.

The governors of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware put together the 31-person task force to look at the floods and what needs to be done to mitigate flooding in the future.... This flood study, while it does touch upon the reservoirs, is separate from another ongoing study called the Flexible Flow Management Plan. That plan, which was originally set to be discussed today by the Delaware River Basin Commission, is still under review.

...Diane Tharp, a Shawnee, Pa., resident who has become a lead activist on the Delaware floods, said Tuesday she hopes the recommendations made in Tuesday's report will be incorporated into the flow management study.

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