Yakima County

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.   ...

For the 3rd year in a row, the Washington Department of Ecology has declared a drought emergency in central Washington.  Ecology noted in Tuesday’s announcement that back-to-back droughts in 2023 and 2024 took their toll on Upper Yakima, Lower Yakima and Naches watersheds, causing significant deficits in precipitation and soil moisture.   The De...

This year, as in year’s past, the Washington State Department of Agriculture will deploy thousands of traps to monitor for Japanese beetle adults.  While the program traps around nurseries and farms throughout the state, most traps are placed at pathways like airports, railways, or transfer stations.  The Departmen...

Earlier this month, a federal judge in Spokane ordered a trio of central Washington dairies to provide water filters for nearby residents as well as test area wells for nitrate contamination.  Judge Thomas Rice issued the preliminary injunction December 17th at the request of the EPA against Cow Palace, DeRuyter and Liberty dairies in Yakima County.  Accordi...

According to the Washington State Department of Agriculture, homeowners who live in a previous Japanese beetle treatment area in Yakima or Benton counties can now give consent and sign up for 2025 Japanese beetle treatments.  WSDA said southcentral Washington homeowners can get these free treatments by getting a consent form, either in English or in Spanish, filling it out and returning it to the

Last week, USDA Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced that USDA is partnering with farmers and small businesses to expand access to clean energy and lower energy bills through the Rural Energy for America Program.  The USDA announced $104 million in loans and grants to support over 300 clean energy projects in 34 states.  That in...

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 ...

Now ALL outdoor burning is banned that's according to the Yakima County Fire Chiefs Association and the the Yakima County Fire Marshal.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) Pest Program is now seeking treatment consent from residents of Yakima, Benton, and Franklin counties.