Another Major Ice Jam Expected On Allegheny River

English: Lock and Dam Number 2 on the Allegheny River at Aspinwall, Pennsylvania, USA (part of the Pittsburgh metropolitian area). The lock and dam were built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a part of an extensive system of locks and dams to improve navigation along the Allegheny River. The Highland Park bridge crosses the river just above the dam. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Allegheny River is poised to see its largest river ice jam in almost 20 years, according to the National Weather Service.

“The last time we had a major ice event was January 1996,” said Lee Hendricks, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Moon. “There was a lot of ice, primarily on the Allegheny River, and a decent snowpack.” A snowpack forms when snow from the surrounding countryside melts and runs into creeks, rivers and lakes.

“Rain covered the top (of the ice) and we had decently high temperatures,” he said. “It caused the ice to break loose and caused a lot of problems, including flooding in a lot of locations and river navigation headaches.”

Hendricks said the region’s extremely cold temperatures won’t break for at least another 10 days, so conditions will be ideal for the same situation to occur.

Read more: http://triblive.com/neighborhoods/yourallekiskivalley/yourallekiskivalleymore/5469537-74/ice-river-allegheny#ixzz2rKs8N291
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook

Drought May Sink Mississippi River Commerce

ABOARD THE DREDGE POTTER, on the Mississippi River — This ship is making sure that the Big River, shrinking under one of the worst droughts in modern history, stays deep enough.

The Potter is scooping this stretch of the Mississippi River’s navigation channel just south of St. Louis, the ship’s 32-foot-wide head sucking up about 60,000 cubic yards of sediment each day and depositing it via a long discharge pipe a thousand feet to the side in a violent, muddy plume that smells like muck and summer.

The Army Corps of Engineers has more than a dozen dredging vessels working the Mississippi this summer.  Despite being fed by water flowing in from more than 40 percent of the United States, the river is feeling the ruinous drought affecting so much of the Midwest.  Some stretches are nearing the record low-water levels experienced in 1988, when river traffic was suspended in several spots.

That is unlikely this year, because of careful engineering work to keep the largest inland marine system in the world passable.  But tow operators are dealing with the shallower channel by hauling fewer barges, loading them lighter and running them more slowly, raising their costs.  Since May, about 60 vessels have run aground in the lower Mississippi.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/us/drought-may-sink-mississippi-river-commerce-649733/#ixzz246DvXrjq

Schuylkill River Festival, Saturday, October 8th, Pottstown

The 2011 Schuylkill River Festival in Pottstown will be held this Saturday, October 8th from 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.  Fine art, crafts, kid’s activities, music and food.  Native American Dancing and displays, cultural exhibits from various groups, and Environmental Conservation and Preservation Displays.

The Scenes of the Schuylkill River Heritage Area Art Show and Sale, featuring original 85 works from regional artists, will be open throughout the day at Montgomery County Community College‘s Art Gallery, at 16 W. High Street.

The Schuylkill River Heritage Area will also host a Schuylkill River Trail information table with free full-color maps to anyone signing up for our email updates.

New this year will be a geocaching table, sponsored by Vintage Connections, with guided geocaching hunts at 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.  You can take the 2011 Schuylkill River Trail Geocaching Adventure and enter to win a gift basket with wine, books and other items from the Schuylkill River Heritage Area and Vintage Connections.