washington department of ecology

Eastern Washington is already in its fourth straight year of drought, and a new 20-year water forecast from WSU and the Department of Ecology paints a picture of tighter summer water supplies for farms, fish, and growing communities.

State leaders and farmers broke ground on the EL 80.6 water delivery system near Othello, set to boost the region's potato industry by channeling water from the Columbia River.

A western Washington business faces a hefty fine for dumping millions of gallons of untreated waste.

In 2024, the Washington Department of Ecology decided to do a water adjudication in Whatcom County, impacting both surface and ground water.

The Washington Department of Ecology and RAN General Partnership, and its owner Rick Alamwala, announced last week a settlement over a $20,000 penalty.

The Washington Department of Ecology fined a Spokane County farmer $100,000 for allegedly repeatedly irrigating 69 acres at Wild Rose Prairie, near Deer Park, without authorization.

Ecology said this survey is part of an ongoing effort to build drought resilience in the region and address the environmental, social and economic impacts that may occur because of drought conditions.

The Washington Department of Ecology has expanded the drought emergency declared in April.  Ecology declared drought for the Yakima Basin watersheds on April 8, while issuing a drought advisory for Puget Sound region and portions of the Central and North Cascades.  Since t...

If you own land, or you’re thinking about buying, water rights are an important detail to know.  Whether you're trying to understand them, trying to get them, or trying to find them, water rights are complicated.  But to help land owners, or would be landowners, the Washington Department of Ecology has unveiled a new, interactive Water Resources Web Map.  DOE says this new map w...

With temperatures across the Northwest warming, and the start of Summer less than three weeks away, farmers, ranchers and producers are being reminded of the importance of water conservation.   “Drought cannot only develop due to water supply shortages stemming from below normal snowpack, but drought can also develop, especially during the summer, due to high temperatures driving high evaporative