“Just Move Water From The Columbia”

For growers that use the Roza Irrigation District, this could be a long season, thanks to the likelihood of a lack of water, due to a poor snowpack. However, the Canadian Rockies enjoyed a solid snowpack, leaving the Columbia River in good shape for the year ahead.

You Can't Just Move Water From The Columbia

Scott Revell, Manager of the Roza Irrigation District said in drought years, which 2026 is shaping up to be, he gets a lot of questions about pulling water from the Columbia and using it to meet the needs of the Yakima Valley. He said that’s not a viable option.

“Since 1997, there's been a requirement from the state of Washington that any new withdrawals in the summer in July and August need to be mitigated," Revell noted. "So, if you take a bucket out, you've got to put a bucket back. So, there are economic reasons where it's not feasible on top of their regulatory issues. So, people see, they look out at the Columbia, they see a lot of water and they say, how hard can it be? This is a plumbing issue. You just move water from point A to point B and there's a lot more to it than that.”

Photo: WSU

Revell said 2026 is already shaping up to be similar to other very dry years, such as 2015.