Paper 1 6 



RIVER RUNOFF ALONG THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC COAST IN 1976 



Elizabeth D. Haynes 



The river runoff (rate of volume flow) presented 



The river runoTT (rate or volume Tlow; presented 

 calculated from the continuously recorded water level 

 stations located at Trentonr NJ^ on the Delawar 



PniinKL-oartc-io^ MY- nn <-ho WiiHcon Piv/^r. anH al/-\r\n *-ho 



Poughk eepsi e X 



. ..v^a-'- -- K - • >- ' NY^ on the Hudson Riverr and 

 Chesapeake Bay at the sections shown in 

 and P ough keeps i e 



here is 



at gaging 



e Ri ver/^ 



along the shores of 



Appendix 16.1. Trenton 



and Poughkeepsie are upstream of any tidal influence^ but the 

 tidal flow and consequent mixing need to be accounted for in 

 order to estimate Chesapeake Bay runoff. 



The unusual warming in January and February caused higher than 



average runoff in February in all three estuaries. Spring runoff 



normally peaks at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in March and 



continues high in April as a result of snow melt in the southerly 



James and Potomac river basins/ in contrast to Delaware Bay^ in 



which the average runoff is greatest in Aprils with March a close 

 s econd . 



By March there was no snow nor river ice left in the drainage 



areas/ so runoff was unusually low. April was hot and dry/ with 



less than 50% of normal rainfall and temperatures reaching the 



mid-90's; runoff was low (Appendix 16.1/ Fig. 16.1). Flow 

 continued below average through May/ and then was essentially 



average in magnitude (within 10/000 cu ft/s ' of the long-term 

 mean at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay) until October. 



Due to a succession of frontal waves/ rainfall in September 

 exceeded 1502i of normal. On one day/ 5 inches of rain fell in 

 the Chesapeake drainage basin. This weather pattern continued in 

 October and brought three times the rainfall normal for the 

 month. 



'The data used in this report were supplied by the U.S. 

 Geological Survey District Offices in Hudson/ NY/ Trenton/ NJ/ 

 aad Towson/ MD . 



^Resource Assessment Division/ National Marine Fisheries 

 Service/ NOAA/ Washington/ DC 20235. 



M/000 cu ft/s = 28.32 wis. 



281 



