USACE CWMS - Salt River Watershed

The Corps Water Management System (CWMS) includes four interrelated models to assist with water management for the basin:

- GeoHMS (Geospatial Hydrologic Modeling Extension)
- ResSIM (Reservoir System Simulation)
- RAS (River Analysis System)
- FIA (Flood Impact Analysis)

The Salt River basin is located in northeast Missouri, covering approximately 2,881 square miles of area. The headwaters are located within Schuyler County less than 15 miles north of the town of Kirksville, Missouri. The basin generally flows south and then turns east and flows to its outlet at the confluence with the Mississippi River near the town of Louisiana, Missouri. The watershed is a gently undulating plain in the upstream portion and it becomes more rolling and hilly in the downstream reaches. High rock bluffs border the streams at various locations. The river valleys are characterized by fairly narrow, tortuous courses interspersed by areas of widened bottomlands. Nearly the entire basin is located within the Central Claypan region, meaning soils in the basin are generally deep with a silt loam surface overlying a silty clay subsoil of very low permeability. The primary land use in the basin is agriculture; however there are some urbanized areas within the basin, including the towns of Kirksville, Mexico, Shelbina, Moberly, Paris, and New London. The only USACE dam within the basin is Clarence Cannon Dam, which impounds water to form Mark Twain Lake. Approximately 80% of the drainage area within the Salt River basin is controlled by the dam. Clarence Cannon Dam has several project purposes, including flood control, hydroelectric power generation, water supply, fish and wildlife, recreation, and incidental navigation on the Mississippi River.