Water flow to Truckee River halts

Water flow to Truckee River halts

RENO - Water has stopped flowing from Lake Tahoe into the Truckee River after the lake dropped below its natural rim and the level of its spillways.

It's not likely to rise above the rim until rain or snow begin refilling the lake.

River flows are being sustained with water released from Boca Reservoir but that flow will be shut off Wednesday, according to federal water master Garry Stone.

After that, flows through Reno should diminish quickly in yet another sign of a drought now in its fifth year.

"Through town is where you'll really start to see a difference," said Bill Hauck, senior water supply coordinator for the Truckee Meadows Water Authority. "It will be a pretty dramatic drop-off."

Releases of drought reserves from the reservoir system will continue to help meet the water demand of the Reno-Sparks area, which is about 110 million gallons per day. Most of that normally is supplied by the river.

Hauck said even a single heavy winter could help the situation dramatically. In 1995, on the heels of an eight-year drought, a heavy winter brought lake levels up 6 feet.

"We really need to pray for a wet winter," Hauck said.