How much runoff can Flagstaff volcanic lakebed hold?

Last August we were in Flagstaff as the giant Copeland Canal was under construction to divert flood waters from the Timberlake area below the Schultz fire burn area, to Cinder Lake, a dry lakebed filled with volcanic cinders of unknown depth.

Now, according to a story in the Daily Sun, officials are trying to determine how much water the lakebed sediments can hold and what impact they could have on the adjacent unlined landfill. [right, county, state, and Forest Service officials are briefed on the newly dredged channel emptying into Cinder Lake, August 25, 2010. AZ Div. of Emergency Management Director Lou Trammell is in the light colored shirt in the center. AZGS geologist Ann Youberg is in the purple shirt at right. My photo]