Washington Drought

Soils across the Northwest continue to dry out. And according to USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey, that drying out has happened quickly over the past couple of weeks.

Water supply numbers this month may look slightly better than June, but it will still be a long irrigation season for many in central Washington.

Soil moisture levels continue to fall across the region as we prepare to welcome in the month of July.

Much of the Pacific Northwest has seen warmer and drier than normal conditions over the past several months.

As summer starts in the Northwest, area soils continue to dry out.  The latest numbers from USDA show only 13% of Washington has soil moisture numbers on par for where they should be this time of year.  86% of the state is considered Abnormally Dry, or a D0 designation, while nearly 50% of the state is under a D1, or Moderate Drought.     O...

The water supply for central Washington continues to dwindle, and irrigation demands will not be met this season in the Yakima Basin.  The Bureau of Reclamation’s June Total Water Supply Available Forecast indicates senior water rights will receive 100% full entitlements, but junior water rights will only receive 43% of their full entitlements this year.  That is a  decreas...

In Washington, over 80% of the state is considered Abnormally Dry for this time of year, a significant jump from the 53% reported this time last week.  Currently 23% of the state is under a D1, or Moderate Drought designation, unchanged from last week.  Current...

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...

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

On Tuesday, the Roza Irrigation district temporarily stopped diverting water for a "temporary drought related shutdown".  The move came after Roza was notified by the Bureau of Reclamation that water rationing would start on May 20 and runs for 7-13 days.  Reclama...