Full water supply expected for farmers

YAKIMA – Farmers in Eastern Washington’s Yakima Valley, hard hit by a drought last year, can expect to receive a full supply of irrigation water this season, the Bureau of Reclamation announced Wednesday in its first water supply forecast for 2006.

The bureau delivered the news as yet another snowstorm blew through the Cascades, where snow pack was 106 percent of average on March 1. The water supply forecast, based on precipitation, snow pack and stream flow data, indicates a full supply will be available for all water users in the Yakima River basin.

“It’s the first year we can give a thumbs up to water supply for everybody” this early, said Chuck Garner, Yakima Project river operations supervisor for the bureau.

The forecast was far more grim at this time last year. Extremely poor snow pack levels – 22 percent of average – forced the bureau to estimate the water supply at just 34 percent of average for junior water users, whose water rights are proratable.

Those irrigators ended up receiving a supply at 42 percent of average – slightly above the dire first prediction, but still grave enough to force some growers to reduce or rotate crops.

The Roza Irrigation District, for one, spent $2.8 million to buy water for its irrigators, despite shutting down for three weeks in April and ending its season three weeks early.

The state reimbursed the district for half the money it spent. The hope is that the district can now rebuild its spending account as the water supply forecast improves, said Tom Monroe, district operations manager.

“We’re really pleased. It’s amazing how much the winter storm patterns have changed from this time last year,” Monroe said. “Now, let’s just hope for the best for the rest of the season.”

The Yakima River basin requires 2.7 million acre feet of water each year to serve the area’s 460,000 irrigated acres. Of that, roughly 1.7 million acre feet come from the basin’s five reservoirs, with snowpack making up the difference.

By March 1, the basin’s reservoirs were at just 38 percent of capacity. Winter storms that blanketed the mountains with snow have been followed by warm temperatures, melting the snow a little before freezing again. Those conditions improve the water content and could boost the water supply later, Garner said.

“It’s a great cycle right now,” he said.

Still of concern, though, was the possibility that early warm temperatures could melt mountain snow too quickly, or that precipitation could dry up in the coming weeks.

“We have to be a little cautious about runoff,” Garner said.