The U.S. Army Corps Engineers’ Philadelphia District posted the 2024 Recreation Plan for the Francis E. Walter Dam. The plan specifies dates and actions associated with whitewater and fishing releases from the dam from late March to early October of 2024. USACE coordinates the plan with the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
In 2024, the plan includes 24 whitewater releases and 22 fishing enhancement releases (unchanged from prior years). The 2024 recreation plan has no changes from the prior year. 2023 included a minor change to the “Planned Fishing Releases”, the first three weekends in March were moved to three consecutive weekends in September following Labor Day. This will stay the same in 2024. Please note at the conclusion of the ongoing feasibility study, we will host a public meeting for additional comment. The below plan will remain in effect until that time.
Dates for fishing releases and whitewater releases are noted below. Several dates are dependent on adequate water storage in the reservoir. It’s important to note that the need for flood control operations could result in the cancellation of any scheduled dates.
Whitewater Releases Schedule (dates with * are dependent on adequate water storage):
- May: 11, 18, 25, 26
- June: 8, 9, 22, 23
- July: 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28
- August: 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24*, 25*, 31*
- September: 1*
Fishing Enhancement Releases Schedule (dates with * are dependent on adequate water storage):
- Planned dates (16) for fishing releases (target 400cfs*)
- *March: 23, 24, 30, 31
- *April: 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28
- *May: 4, 5, 12, 19
- Release will be set to match inflow with a target release up to 400cfs. Inflow will not be augmented by use of storage to satisfy the 400cfs target.
- Planned dates (6) for fishing releases (target 350cfs**) are:
- **September: 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22
- ** With the pool at 1365 on 1 July, storage is sufficient to support the planned white-water recreation releases through 18 August and Fisheries augmentation releases of up to 100cfs through Friday 12 July and up to 50cfs through Friday 6 September. After those dates additional water must be accumulated during the recreation season to make the 6 additional 350cfs fishing releases possible. These releases will be made from 1 AM Saturday until 1PM Sunday for a continuous 36-hour period. If these fishing releases are cancelled due to high flows, they may be rescheduled at a later date at the Corps discretion.