drought
U.S. Senate lawmakers grapple with Western drought
Decades of drought in the West has made water quality and quantity a major issue requiring government funding and innovation to fix, members of a U.S. Senate panel said Wednesday. Demand for water in growing municipalities is stretching agricultural and tribal communities, while shrinking availability is leading to higher water prices, witnesses told the Senate […]
Idaho’s water supply is declining. Officials discuss challenges at state summit.
Water experts and public officials across the state presented challenges, success stories and solutions regarding Idaho’s water supply at the Governor’s Water Summit on Monday at the Idaho Capitol in Boise. Officials recognized that water levels in Idaho are in decline, and some of the main challenges they discussed at the summit include population growth, […]
A parched summer is posing difficulties for Washington farmers and fish
The record-warm May that burned off a sizable chunk of the state’s snowpack has left flows in many of Washington’s rivers and streams depleted heading into late summer. It’s not the driest year the state has seen. But it’s still bad news for fish that depend on cool water and ample streamflows for survival and […]
Washington declares drought emergency in 12 counties
With much of Washington parched from a warm and dry spring, state officials on Monday announced a drought emergency for watersheds in a dozen counties. Farmers, fish, and household water customers are all facing difficulties, according to the Department of Ecology. This follows a May and June that Ecology says were the fourth warmest and […]