Will the Coming Rain Bring Change?
by Dick Greenan
What a week of BAD weather we've had! A cold and rainy 4th was not what the Chamber of Commerce was talking about a month ago! And who was the fool suggesting rain dances, because we were in a drought? (Oh, Oh, that was me!) And you would think that with all of this precipitation our ponds would be over flowing, but surprisingly, they are NOT! During the past ten days, the rain gauge at the Wings Mill Dam recorded just 1.34″ of rain which did not represent the deluge the Village received in that microburst event, showing just how localized that storm was.
As I write this weekly's column, the "experts" are now forecasting 1.63″ of precipitation for the next ten days. If that happens, it should bring all of our ponds up to two to three inches ABOVE full pond, which will seem like a flood but should not float anyone's dock nor interfere with our nesting birds.
Even with all of this rain, our water levels are not going up as drastically as we would have expected, which demonstrates just how low our water table is. Salmon/McGrath reported that they are now just 1″ below full pond with their one gate opened just enough for the mandated 1 cfs flow. Our neighbors on Messalonskee are now down 6.36″ below full pond with their gates intermittently opened for electricity generation. Long Pond is presently just ½″ below full with Great Pond actually ½″ above at full pond. But again, that's all going to change with the incoming rains.
Enjoy the family, your vacation, and keep those umbrellas and sweaters handy!
Dick Greenan is secretary to the Belgrade Lakes Watershed Dams Committee. He submitted this report on July 8.
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