The current level of Lake of the Woods is 322.42m (1057.8 ft), a 35th percentile level for this time of year. The average lake level rose by 1 cm (0.5 in) over the past week and is expected to change little over the next week. Upstream, the International Joint Commission’s Water Levels Committee set targets for Namakan Lake and Rainy Lake at the end of March at the lower end of the respective Rule Curve ranges and the dam operators have increased outflow from both lakes to meet these targets. This has resulted in a modest increase in inflow to Lake of the Woods for the remainder of March. In response, the LWCB is gradually increasing outflow Lake of the Woods to maintain storage room ahead of the spring melt. The following flow adjustments are planned over the next week:
March 16: from 300 to 315 m³/s
March 17: 330 m³/s
March 18: 345 m³/s
March 19: 360 m³/s
March 20: 375 m³/s
Each flow adjustment will result in the Winnipeg River near Kenora rising by roughly 3 cm ( 1 in). The Winnipeg River level at Minaki will not be affected by these adjustments.
The current level of Lac Seul is 354.87 m (1164.3 ft), a 30th percentile level for this time of year. The lake level declined by 7 cm (3 in) over the past week and is expected to decline by 4 to 6 cm (2-3 in) over the next week. Lac Seul authorized outflow will be reduced from 250 m³/s to 200 m³/s on Thursday, March 16.