Shoshone and Clarks Fork River Basin (5)
May 2000

Snow
Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) is 70 percent of the May 1 average (55 percent of last year) in the Shoshone River basin. The Clarks Fork River basin SWE is 76 percent of the May 1 average (67 percent of last year). For more information see the Basin Summary of Snow Course Data at the beginning of this report.

Precipitation
Precipitation for the month of April was 83 percent of normal (53 percent of last year). Monthly percentages range from 33 to 161 percent of average. The basin year-to-date precipitation is now 93 percent of average (74 percent of last year). Year-to-date percentages range from 41 to 163 percent of average.

Reservoir
Current storage in Buffalo Bill Reservoir is 129 percent of average (119 percent of last year's storage). Currently, about 430,800 acre-feet are stored in the reservoir compared to 360,800 acre feet last year. Detailed reservoir data is shown on the following page and on the reservoir storage summary at the beginning of this report.

Streamflow
The fifty percent yield (May through September period) for North Fork Shoshone River at Wapiti is expected to be 360,000 acre-feet (75 percent of average). South Fork of the Shoshone River near Valley is estimated to yield of 170,000 acre-feet (66 percent of average), and South Fork above Buffalo Bill Reservoir is expected to be 115,000 acre-feet (53 percent of average). At the Buffalo Bill Reservoir, the fifty percent chance yield for the Shoshone River is expected to be about 535,000 acre-feet (71 percent of average). The fifty-percent chance yield for the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone near Belfry, Montana is expected to be about 475,000 acre- feet (84 percent of average). 

==================================================================================================================================
                                               SHOSHONE & CLARKS FORK RIVER BASINS
                                               Streamflow Forecasts - May 1, 2000
==================================================================================================================================
                                              |  <<====== Drier ======  Future Conditions  =======  Wetter =====>>  |             
                                              |                                                                     |
  Forecast Point                     Forecast |  ==================== Chance Of Exceeding * ======================  |
                                      Period  |    90%       70%    |  50% (Most Probable)  |      30%       10%    |  30-Yr Avg.
                                              | (1000AF)  (1000AF)  |   (1000AF)  (% AVG.)  |    (1000AF)  (1000AF) |    (1000AF)
====================================================================|=======================|=====================================
NF SHOSHONE RIVER at Wapiti          MAY-SEP       312       341    |      360        75    |       379       408            480
                                                                    |                       |
SF SHOSHONE RIVER nr Valley          MAY-SEP       134       156    |      170        66    |       184       206            259
                                                                    |                       |
SF SHOSHONE RIVER abv Buffalo Bill   MAY-SEP        58        92    |      115        53    |       138       172            218
                                                                    |                       |
BUFFALO BILL DAM Inflow (2)          MAY-SEP       402       481    |      535        71    |       589       668            754
                                                                    |                       |
CLARKS FORK RIVER nr Belfry          MAY-SEP       391       441    |      475        84    |       509       559            566
                                                                    |                       |
==================================================================================================================================
                   SHOSHONE & CLARKS FORK RIVER BASINS                  |           SHOSHONE & CLARKS FORK RIVER BASINS
             Reservoir Storage (1000 AF) - End of April                 |        Watershed Snowpack Analysis - May 1, 2000
==================================================================================================================================
                                      Usable |  *** Usable Storage ***  |                            Number     This Year as % of
Reservoir                            Capacity|  This      Last          |   Watershed                  of       =================
                                             |  Year      Year     Avg  |                          Data Sites   Last Yr   Average
========================================================================|=========================================================
BUFFALO BILL                           646.6    430.8    360.8    335.1 |   SHOSHONE RIVER              7        55        70
                                                                        |
                                                                        |   CLARKS FORK in WY           7        67        76
                                                                        |
==================================================================================================================================
 * 90%, 70%, 30%, and 10% chances of exceeding are the probabilities that the actual volume will exceed the volumes in the table.

The average is computed for the 1961-1990 base period.

(1) - The values listed under the 10% and 90% Chance of Exceeding are actually 5% and 95% exceedance levels.                  
(2) - The value is natural volume - actual volume may be affected by upstream water management.
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