NO. 2002-31

A RESOLUTION to terminate the drought emergency that was declared by Resolution No. 2001-32 on December 18, 2001 and extended by Resolution No. 2002-25 on October 16, 2002.

WHEREAS, by Resolution No. 2002-25 on October 16, 2002, due to continued poor hydrologic conditions throughout the basin, the Commissioners extended through November 25, 2002 the drought emergency it declared in December 2001; and

WHEREAS, the hydrology of the Delaware River Basin has improved, due to above-normal precipitation during the months of September, October, and November. Evidence of improved conditions includes the following:

• New York City's Delaware Basin storage has increased to more than 63 percent of its useable capacity, or over 12 billion gallons above the long-term median storage level for this time of year;
• Streamflows throughout the basin have returned to normal and in some areas above-normal for the past two months;
• Lower basin reservoir water supply storage, including storage in Beltzville, Blue Marsh and Nockamixon reservoirs, has reached full capacity; and
• There is no longer a foreseeable need for drought storage in F.E. Walter Reservoir to achieve the Trenton flow objective; and

WHEREAS, the State of Delaware and the City of New York have terminated their respective drought emergencies; and

WHEREAS, Pennsylvania has terminated its drought emergency in all but two of the counties within the basin, and New Jersey has relaxed its statewide non-essential water use restrictions in the northern and central portions of the state; and

WHEREAS, in spite of the improved conditions in most parts of the basin, ground water levels in the southern portion of New Jersey as well as in Chester and Delaware counties in Pennsylvania remain below normal, and state-imposed mandatory use restrictions remain in place in these locations; and

WHEREAS, during the drought watch, warning and emergency to date, the Commission directed releases totaling 11.5 billion gallons from regional reservoirs in Pennsylvania and reduced diversions by the City of New York and the State of New Jersey, thereby maintaining flows in the main stem and conserving 43 billion gallons of water in New York City's Delaware Basin water supply reservoirs; now therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Delaware River Basin Commission:

1. The basinwide drought emergency declared by Resolution No. 2001-32 on December 18, 2001 and extended by Resolution No. 2002-25 on October 16, 2002 is hereby terminated.
2. The Commission appreciates the support of the public and private reservoir owners, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; PPL Generation, LLC; Mirant New York/Generation, LLC; and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, whose partnership and cooperation were vital to managing the severe drought over the past year.
3. The Commission fully supports the ongoing drought actions of the states in areas of the basin that continue to experience below-normal ground water levels.

ADOPTED: November 25, 2002