We monitor the weather and collect precipitation and river level information to understand current and potential river conditions. To gather this information, we have been cooperating with the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and the National Weather Service (NWS) for more than 100 years.
Precipitation tracked by Citizen Observers
To track precipitation amounts, Miami Conservancy District maintains a network of 42 stations staffed by citizen observers who record daily precipitation. The observers read the amounts collected at standard National Weather Service (NWS) rain and snow gages and send the readings to MCD via mail or electronic submittal. The data is used to calculate annual precipitation for the watershed by averaging annual precipitation totals measured at each of the stations. The information from these precipitation stations is published in a monthly precipitation report. Twenty-eight of the precipitation stations have more than 75 years of record. The Urbana station has the longest period of record—141 years. Long records are required for resource planning and understanding environmental trends. Air temperature is also recorded at six stations are and published in "Climatological Data, Ohio," prepared by NWS. The five stations are: Bellefontaine, Greenville, Sidney, Springfield Water Treatment Plant, and Eaton.
