The Government of the Northwest Territories maintains water monitoring stations across the territory to keep track of water levels and flow rates in areas of potential flood risk for communities.

This information is provided regularly to territorial and regional emergency managers to help understand the status of waterways across the NWT in the lead-up to, and during spring break-up – the highest-risk period for floods in the Northwest Territories.

Technical Data

NWT Water Monitoring Bulletin – August 2nd, 2024

Current Status –Territorial Overview

• Water levels and flow rates remain very low across most of the NWT, but flow rates have started to slowly rise in July on some rivers.
  • Great Slave Lake remains at its lowest water level recorded for this time of year but has increased by 7 cm since early June.
  • Flow rates on the Slave River, Lockhart River and Cameron River have increased in July, but are still below average for this time of year.
  • Flow rates on the Hay River are at their second lowest recorded value for this time of year, second only to flow rates in 2023.
  • Most other gauged tributaries to Great Slave Lake are below average for this time of year.
  • Flow rates on the Liard River are responding to recent precipitation events and have increased to approximately average for this time of year.
  • Water levels on Great Bear Lake and Great Bear River are at or near their lowest recorded values for this time of year.
  • Flow rates at most locations along the Mackenzie River are well below average or at their lowest recorded values for this time of year.
  • Water levels and flow rates in the Beaufort Delta region, including the Peel River, Arctic Red River, Mackenzie River East Channel (at Inuvik) and Main Channel are either below average or at their lowest recorded values for this time of year.

• Low water levels continue to be the result of extreme drought conditions that began in the summer of 2022.
• Cumulative precipitation so far this spring and summer has been below average for NWT communities, with the exception of Inuvik. Cumulative rainfall in Yellowknife has been very low relative to normal.
• Low water levels on Great Slave Lake and the Mackenzie River are influenced by rainfall received in northern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and southern NWT.
  • Precipitation in the Mackenze River basin in northern BC and AB has been approximately average so far this summer, with some variability between communities.
• July temperatures across the NWT were either much warmer than average or warmer than average.
• July precipitation across the NWT was variable: Inuvik and Fort Simpson received above average precipitation, Norman Wells and Yellowknife received below or well below average precipitation, and Fort Smith and Hay River received approximately average precipitation.
• A precipitation outlook provided by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) meteorologists suggests that precipitation for the period of August-September-October will be above average in the NWT.