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ICE EFFECTS ON STREAMFLOW
The formation of ice on rivers can cause discharge values to appear unusually high. Display of these erroneous discharge data may result in improper assessment of flow conditions and misuse of the data. For this reason, display of discharge values for streams significantly affected by ice may be disabled from view. Display of discharge data will resume when ice conditions are no longer present. Discharge values for streams minimally affected by ice will continue to be displayed. Flows for streams with these conditions appear to increase during the night and decrease to near-base-line conditions around midday. To estimate the correct discharge for these streams, use the flow rate that corresponds to the bottom of the discharge curve, rather than the peak that corresponds to the top of the curve. Note that this method of estimation is possible only when no surface runoff is occurring. Daily mean discharges for periods of both significant and minimal ice-effect will be estimated and published in the Annual Water-Data Report for the water year in which they occurred.
LOCATION--Lat
42°16'04", long 72°19'59", Hampshire County, Hydrologic Unit
01080204, on left bank at West Ware, 1.4 mi downstream from Quabbin Reservoir,
3.5 mi east of Belchertown, and 8.0 mi upstream from mouth.
This gage is monitored in cooperation with the Massachusetts
Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Water Supply Protection, Office of Watershed Management,
with funding from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority .
Photo of Swift River looking Downstream
Photo of Swift River looking Upstream
DRAINAGE AREA--189 mi2, includes 1.6 mi2 drained by
Beaver Brook, flow of which is diverted from Ware
PERIOD OF RECORD--Discharge: July 1910 to September 1912 (twice-daily gage
heights and corresponding discharge), October 1912 to current year.
Water-quality records: Water years 195254.
REVISED RECORDS--WSP 451: 1916. WSP 871: 1919. WSP 1031: 1944 (changes in
reservoir contents and adjusted figures only). WSP 1301: 1925(M).
WDR
MA-RI-84-1: drainage area.
GAGE--Data Collection Platform with satellite telemeter. Datum of gage is 364.54 ft above NAVD 1988.
Prior to May 11, 2020, datum reported as 365.18 ft above NGVD 1929. Prior to Aug. 25, 1912, non-recording gage at site 400 ft
upstream at same datum.
REMARKS--Flow regulated since August 1939 by Quabbin Reservoir, usable
capacity, 53.8 billion cubic feet. Diversion from Ware River to Quabbin
Reservoir since 1940, from Quabbin Reservoir to Wachusett Reservoir since 1941,
from Quabbin Reservoir to Chicopee Valley aqueduct since 1950, and from Quabbin
Reservoir to city of Worcester at
times since 1966.
Boating safety tips
Min (1970) | 25th percen- tile | Most Recent Instantaneous Value Mar 8 | Median | Mean | 75th percen- tile | Max (1997) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
27.0 | 38 | 44.7 | 45 | 87 | 98 | 514 |