drought

According to the state Department of Ecology, drought conditions continue in central Washington and may be developing in the northern and even western parts of the state.  And the recent Water Supply Availability Committee meeting indicated existing drought conditions are likely to persist through the summer, and in some areas, conditions may worsen. T...

The great start the Washington snowpack enjoyed back in November and early December has somewhat waned, thanks to a quiet and uneventful December.  Latest snowpack numbers for much of the Evergreen State are still above normal, but not by the measure we saw a month or two ago.  Right n...

Weather patterns have been on the relatively dry side across the Northwest as we start the month of December.  But that doesn’t mean snowpacks aren’t in good shape across the Evergreen state.   Matt Warbritton with NRCS said thanks to a very active November, in which an atmospheric river brought multiple wet systems to the region, "Overall snowpack across the state is maintaining at higher le

The new snow year is just a few days old, but the snowpack is already showing signs of life in Washington.  NRCS’ Matt Warbritton said the pack is already looking good for the Washington Cascades, and he expects that to continue as the system that rolled through the region late Monday and early Tuesday continues to dump snow.     ...

Late last week, the USDA designated Yakima County as a Primary Natural Disaster Area for Drought.  The designation allows FSA to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from drought through emergency loans.  Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to refinance certa

FSA has designated half a dozen Washington counties as primary natural disaster areas due to drought.  The designation allows for the FSA to send emergency credit through emergency loans to producers in Chelan, Douglas, Grant, Kittitas, Okanagan and Skagit counties.  According to the ...

According to the latest figures from the U.S. Drought Monitor, only 13% of Washington is where it should be soil moisture wise for this time of year; and much of that is on the Peninsula.  Over 2% of the Evergreen state is under a D-3, or Extreme Drought designation, with most of that reported in the central part of the state.     ...

Earlier this month, the Bureau of Reclamation announced its August 2024 forecast of total water supply available for the Yakima basin.  Those figures indicate the water supply will not fully meet irrigation demands this season.  The total water supply available for the May 21-September 30 period indicates senior water rights will receive 100% of full entitlements, while junior water rights will re

Water rationing has begun in Central Washington for growers with jr. water rights.

The Kennewick Irrigation District reports that there are currently NO restrictions on water use for customers.