Yakima River Basin
2025
On Washington state’s Yakima River Basin, water comes down from the eastern slope of Cascade Mountains.
Five reservoirs store the snowmelt which supplies water for farmers and ranchers.
That’s what historically has taken place, but not recently. The past three years have been years of severe drought.
There’s no more kicking the can down the road. The Washington Department of Ecology is putting the brakes on surface water use.
No more water can be drawn from rivers, streams and reservoirs for a month.
Once again, we are reminded, in the starkest way possible, that while climate change can be debated, its impact cannot be ignored.
