While the forecast for the rest of this winter and spring doesn’t appear to be overly wet, the International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board isn’t taking any chances.
The Board has received approval from the International Joint Commission for continued authority to deviate from Plan 2014, if necessary, until Lake Ontario reaches its peak level this spring.
The current deviation authority granted to the Board is set to expire on February 28 but that authority can now be extended should conditions worsen after March 1.
Under the Board’s current strategy, outflows from Lake Ontario have been maximized, resulting in the removal of an additional 7.9 cm of water from Lake Ontario when compared to Plan 2014 rules.
The Board says the risk of high water on Lake Ontario in 2021 remains a moderate possibility, but less likely than the risk was last spring at this time.
