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Smart About Water

Year-to-date indexes represent % of normal. Percentage of normal is based on the same-day median calculated from 1981-2010.

During winter, "snow water equivalent" information is also provided when snow depth is measurable.

This provisional data is provided by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and final data may change slightly. Year-to-date data resets each year on October 1.

The Truckee River flow rate is determined through measurement of cubic feet per second (cfs) at the California-Nevada stateline, which is known as the Floriston Rate.

From March 1 to September 31 the Floriston Rate is set for 500 cfs; then from October 1-February 28 , the regulated rate is 400 cfs. During dry seasons, the Floriston Rate can be reduced to lower cfs levels when Lake Tahoe levels dip below 6,226.0. Flow rates are managed by the Federal Water Master. All data is provided by the United States Geological Survey, in cooperation with the US Bureau of Reclamation.

For recreational enthusiasts, this map outlines all access points, features, diversions and portage options along the Truckee River from Truckee, CA to Tracy, NV.

Volume of water is measured by Acre Feet (AF). While many stakeholders also store water upstream, information shown here only reflects the upstream reserves held by Truckee Meadows Water Authority. Water stored by TMWA is updated daily:

*TMWA owns 100% of the storage at both Donner and Independence Lakes.

Lake Tahoe Dam at Tahoe City controls the top 6.1 feet of Lake Tahoe. The dam gates help regulate the water that enters into the Truckee River. With the natural rim of the lake at 6,223.0 ft above sea level, the highest water level that can be held back by the dam is 6,229.1 ft. When at the highest limit, Tahoe’s large surface creates a reservoir with 744,600 acre feet capacity. Lake Tahoe Dam is a 17-gate concrete slab and buttress structure that was completed in 1913 and then modified by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1987.

Water treatment in the Truckee Meadows takes place at two locations: Chalk Bluff Treatment Plant in northwest Reno and downstream at Glendale Treatment Plant which is put online to help meet higher demands in the summer. Both are owned by Truckee Meadows Water Authority. Water Treatment Plant production to serve TWMA customers varies by season, as represented by these typical averages:

Many residents in the region are also served by groundwater wells, which are not represented in the numbers above.

The Truckee River is an excellent source of hydroelectric power. In fact, Fleish, Verdi and Washoe hydroelectric power plants produce an average of 50,000 kWh per year. This clean energy greatly offsets the operational power costs for Truckee Meadows Water Authority and is a key contributing factor for keeping water rates as low as possible for customers. Benefits to the environment are sizable as well. Every day that the hydroelectric plants run at full capacity, over 90,500 pounds of CO2 emissions are effectively eliminated from our atmosphere.