Money for river gauges sought

By Edward Lewis elewis@timesleader.comStaff Writer

Local officials said a multimillion-dollar request for funding of river gauges was made in anticipation of any future cutbacks.

The Susquehanna River Basin Commission at its Dec. 17 meeting approved a resolution urging President and Congress to provide $2.4 million for the Susquehanna Flood Forecast and Warning System.

The money will be used to maintain and upgrade river gauges that provide real-time data in the event of flooding by the Susquehanna River.

“It’s a traditional problem every year,” said Jim Brozena, executive director of the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority. “We have to fight every year for continued funding for the gauges.”

“It’s nothing out of the ordinary,” Luzerne County Emergency Management Director Stephen Bekanich said about the request. “Every one to two years, funding for river gauges is one of the first things considered to be cut.”

Brozena said it is “absolutely imperative” that funding for river gauges be maintained.

He said gauges provide real-time information of river levels that are transmitted by satellite to the National Weather Service in Binghamton, N.Y. The weather service in turn warns local authorities of expected levels and extent of flood inundation.

“Gauges show how the river is reacting,” Brozena said. “It can’t get any more important than that. We depend on the gauges to determine if people need to evacuate. It’s an annual struggle to maintain funding for the gauges.”

Gauges are funded by the federal, state and county governments, Brozena said.

In fall 2008, the flood forecast and warning system was dealt a near blow when funding shortfalls from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers threatened to shut off 34 of the 100-plus river and rain gauges.

U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, in September 2008 restored funding for the gauges under a continuing resolution.

“We do encourage the president and Congress to have the funding in the federal fiscal year budget,” said Susan Obleski, director of communications at the Susquehanna River Basin Commission. “We support that particular dollar amount and we believe it is adequate for operation and maintenance.”