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Water-Year Summary for Site 05030500

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Available Parameters
00060 Discharge(Mean)  

Water year 2023: 2022-10-01 to 2023-09-30
 

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USGS Water-Year Summary 2023
05030500 OTTER TAIL RIVER NEAR ELIZABETH, MN
LOCATION - Lat 46°22'10", long 96°01'02" referenced to North American Datum of 1927, in SW 1/4 SE 1/4 sec.31, T.134 N., R.42 W., Otter Tail County, MN, Hydrologic Unit 09020103, on right bank at County Highway 10, 2.5 miles below Taplin Gorge Dam, 5.0 miles above the Diversion Dam, 5.7 miles east of Elizabeth and 6.6 miles northeast of Fergus Falls.
DRAINAGE AREA - 1,130 mi². updated from 1,230 mi² on 1/20/2015 using Streamstats (gbm).
REVISIONS HISTORY - 1904(M). WDR MN-03-1: Minimum discharge, 2000 and 2001 water years. Unpublished, 2009: 1994(M).
SURFACE-WATER RECORDS
PERIOD OF RECORD - May 1904 to September 1917, monthly discharge only, published as "at German Church near Fergus Falls" in WSP 1308. July 1992 to current year.
GAGE - Water-stage recorder. Elevation of gage is 1,250 ft above sea level (from topographic map). Non-recording gage at same site November 1913 to September 1917 at elevation 1,265 ft (from topographic map).
REMARKS - Flow regulated by power plant upstream.

Records good except for estimated daily discharges, which are poor.
EXTREMES FOR PERIOD OF RECORD - Maximum discharge, 1,360 ft³/s, gage height, 9.69 ft, June 1, 2011; maximum gage height, 9.96 ft, Dec. 14, 2010 (backwater from ice); maximum daily-mean discharge, 1,360 ft³/s, June 2, 2011, (affected by regulation); minimum discharge, 8.8 ft³/s, Mar. 25, 2004 (result of regulation).