This blog post is part of an ongoing series about water
supply conditions. Please click here to read the previous post. If you want to
learn more, visit our Washington water supply information page.
Goodbye hoodies, hello flip-flops – summer temperatures are
here! Despite the heat, our water supplies continue to be in good shape
statewide. We can thank the recent cool, wet “Jultober” conditions for reducing
water demand and improving water supplies. Those moderate conditions felt much
different from last summer, when we were in a statewide drought emergency.
Status of our supplies
Weather impacts | If late June and early July felt cooler
than usual to you, you’re not wrong. Average temperatures for the last month
were within 2 degrees of average statewide, with most of the state being below
average. Things changed late last week when the heat set in, especially on the
east side. Yakima hit 102 on Monday, tying the record high for that day.
Looking ahead, the weather is expected to cool off a bit in the coming days.
Precipitation amounts have been varied, depending on the
region. Over the past 30 days, the north Olympic Peninsula has been drier than
average while the eastern slope of the Cascades and southeast Washington have
been wetter than average. Record daily rainfalls were recorded recently in
Seattle, Kennewick and near Walla Walla. Flash flooding even caused some road
closures in Chelan and Douglas counties.
Rivers and streams | As of today, 28 percent of rivers are
below normal. Our rivers, in an aggregated sense, are just shy of normal flows.
That said, in a few rivers – about 7 percent – flows are much lower than
average or are at record low conditions.
Agriculture | The Yakima River Basin, our drought
bellwether, continues to have a good water supply. Junior water users are being
prorated to 90 percent of full supply. Last year, it was 46 percent. Summer
storms have helped rivers in some areas, especially on the east side, and
reduced the need for continual irrigation.
A bull trout navigates an upper
tributary of the
Yakima River. Photo: William Meyers/WDFW
|
Drinking water | Drinking water supplies in Seattle, Tacoma
and Everett are in good shape.
What’s next
The Water Supply Availability Committee (WSAC) will hold its
monthly meeting on Aug. 11. This committee is a team of experts from state and
national agencies who review data and discuss potential water shortages. If
conditions warrant, this committee can convene the Executive Water Emergency
Committee (EWEC), which is made of state agency leaders with a stake in water
supplies. These leaders assess findings from WSAC and determine whether water
users in affected areas will likely incur undue hardships. EWEC can recommend
the governor consider an emergency drought declaration.
How you can help
It’s easy to make water conservation part of your daily
routine. Here are two tips that will save water and money:
- Wash only full loads of laundry or use the appropriate water level/load size selection on the washing machine.
- Want a nice, cold glass of water? Keep drinking water in the refrigerator instead of letting the faucet run until the water is cool.
For more tips, visit our water conservation page.
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