The abundance of snow has raised a number of questions in and around Weyburn about the possibility of flooding. With roughly 60 centimetres falling this week, people are wondering where it will all go, especially since being wet, heavy snow, and it has a lot of moisture in it.  

Just ahead of the Colorado low that came through the region, the Water Security Agency issued a release noting the risk of flooding below the Rafferty, Boundary and Grant Devine dams was low, but there was the risk of localized flooding with the snow on the way. To accommodate this, they were planning on monitoring the situation, and managing flows if needed.  

Now that the snow has come, Sean Osmar from the WSA said they are continuing to monitor the situation, but they are fairly optimistic about the situation. 

“We’re watching, right now, conditions as they develop,” Osmar explained. “Environment Canada is forecasting a pretty slow warm up, actually, over the next few days which should benefit people in the area and along the Souris.” He noted the slower melt will help with the water being absorbed into the soil, which warmed up last week thanks to the higher temperatures. This is expected to lead to a slower runoff into the water channels.  

It doesn’t mean there is no risk of flooding. The WSA will be watching for a rapid increase in temperature, which could cause some localized flooding. With daytime highs not expected to get above 10° until the middle of next week, though, the slower melt will mean the water should have a chance to get into the soil, with the excess helping to fill dugouts and reservoirs in the southeast.  

As the water does flow into the Souris River, the WSA will also have to work with their partners south of the border depending on the situation. 

“We’re waiting to see conditions down south in the United States, and we can start releasing that way and that will just help balance our reservoirs and make sure we’ve got capacity if needed.” 

There are agreements in place with Saskatchewan, the United States as well as Alberta and Manitoba in terms of water releases. This means coordination in terms of releases to ensure that reservoirs downstream on the Souris have the capacity to accept a release from reservoirs in southeast Saskatchewan.