MORSE RESERVOIR FACTS

Morse Reservoir

Morse Reservoir is in north-central Hamilton County, 3.2 mi northwest of Noblesville and approximately 22 mi north-northeast of Indianapolis, and is formed by the impoundment of Cicero Creek. The reservoir has a design storage capacity of 25,380 acre-ft (8.27 Bgal) at normal pool elevation; a surface area of approximately 1,500 acres; and approximately 32.5 mi of shoreline (Thomas Bruns, Indianapolis Water Company, written commun., 1996). Normal pool elevation is 810 ft above sea level. The reservoir is approximately 6.5 mi long and varies in width from several hundred feet to more than 2,000 ft. Cicero Creek has a drainage area of 214 mi² at Morse dam (Hoggatt, 1975).

Morse and Geist Reservoirs in central Indiana are used primarily for public water supply and secondarily for recreation. The Indianapolis Water Company (IWC), which owns the reservoirs, and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) recognized the potential for sedimentation to affect the capacity of the two reservoirs and the need for data to assess the status of sedimentation in them and their current capacity.

The IDNR is mandated by the 1983 Water Resource Management Act to assess water-resource availability, water use, and conflicts involving limited water supply or competing uses (Indiana Department of Natural Resources, 1994). IDNR has been assessing water availability on a regional scale by major drainage basin. Information on the current capacities of Morse and Geist Reservoirs will be important to the assessment of water availability in the White River Basin.

Additional Information for both Morse and Geist Reservoirs may be found at the following link:   http://in.water.usgs.gov/bathymetry.web/index.shtml