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Drought
MIKE SIEGEL / THE SEATTLE TIMES |
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Riffe Lake is refilled by September rainwater after recording one of its lowest levels in history last year. Because of planning and conservation, however, lower water levels didn't lead to summer blackouts, as feared. |
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It's official: The 2001 drought is over.
The state spent more than $3 million on drought assistance. But meteorologists do not yet see evidence that the drought will persist into the new water year, which runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, 2002.
On this page you’ll find a list of stories providing an in-depth look at the major issues surrounding the water shortage, from fish to farmers, rationing to rate increases.
Worst drought fears a washout as planning, luck lessen impact
The 2000-2001 water year was the state's second-driest on record. Yet planning, money, sacrifice and a little luck combined to soften the drought's impact.
[Sept. 30, 2001]
Seattle lifts water-use warnings
They don't want everyone to go out and run a bath, but Seattle city officials said yesterday that the summer drought is over and local reservoirs are at levels sufficient for humans and fish.
[Sept. 5, 2001]
Drought turns region into tinderbox
A dry winter and a forecast for a hot summer mean Eastern Washington is ripe for devastating blazes.
[July 15, 2001]
Drought could put damper on recreation
Low reservoirs threaten to strand boat ramps and force holiday campers to find new swimming holes and water-skiing spots. [May 27, 2001]
Race to save salmon for spawning
Giant salmon mill in the water below Elwha Dam on the Olympic Peninsula, fenced out of their traditional spawning ground by the concrete and flirting with death by drought. State and tribal biologists and volunteers are waging an effort to move them for spawning — seining the fish from the Elwha River and moving them by net, carrying case, and truck to colder, cleaner water in a holding pond. There, when the salmon's eggs are ready, they will be artificially spawned.
[Aug. 31, 2001]
Court to feds: Pay farmers when water supply goes to fish
In a case that could affect water wars across the West, a federal court has ruled that the government must pay property owners when it takes water away from them to protect fish listed under the Endangered Species Act. [May 4, 2001]
Big aquifer whets thirst of water suppliers
A vast natural reservoir beneath the Snoqualmie Valley could one day provide a new source of drinking water for a growing urban population. [June 18, 2001]
Promoting the long view of water conservation
As drought grips the Northwest, Washington residents are awakening to the need for increased education and research about ways to conserve water and other scarce resources in the region. To address this need, the Friends of the Cedar River Watershed and the city of Seattle are working hard to bring a new environmental education center to the Puget Sound region. [May 18, 2001]
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Klamath Basin farmers, communities reel at cutoff of irrigation water in favor of endangered fish [July 1, 2001]
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