27 Feb 2018

Silver Jackets working to communicate risks

“We’re connecting the dots. I love being part of a team which brings people together and contributes little parts to make a whole project,” said Brian Rast, Kansas City District Lead Silver Jackets Coordinator for Kansas and Missouri. Through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Institute for Water Resources, program funding is provided to Corps of Engineers districts enabling them to partner with agencies in reducing risks from natural hazards. This program is called Silver Jackets.

17 Feb 2018

Navigating and maintaining the river

Navigation is one of the eight authorized purposes of the Missouri River that mandates the Corps of Engineers to manage the navigation channel between Sioux City, Iowa and St. Louis, Missouri. The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1945 calls for a 9-foot deep and minimum 300-foot wide channel. Today, the focus of the Corps of Engineers navigation mission is to provide safe, reliable, efficient and environmentally sustainable waterborne transportation system for movement of commerce, national security needs and recreation. In order to meet this mission, the Corps focuses on repairs to river structures from damage such as ice, debris, scouring and high water velocity.

16 Feb 2018

Water Management: An overview of Osage River Basin operations and rainfall events at Harry S. Truman Reservoir

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Runoff in the Missouri River basin was slightly above average in 2017. Increased releases through the fall has allowed the reservoirs to have all flood storage capability ready for the beginning of the 2018 runoff season. Water management teams help guide the decision making process that prepares our system to handle the unexpected. The coordination through the Northwestern Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in setting releases and storage at the main stem dams in the northern portion of the basin, sets the conditions for our reservoir system on the tributaries that feed into the Missouri River.

15 Feb 2018

River outreach underway

Communication is key, and the Kansas City District understands that concept and strives to implement it. “We have more stakeholders than we know,” said John Grothaus, Kansas City District’s chief of planning. “We are actively searching for them, working to communicate with them to learn their needs while informing what the Corps of Engineers does and how we can best serve the public.”