Snow and ice has blasted the lowlands lately but up high where it counts for the rest of the year, snowpack is still a bit thin in parts of Washington […]Read More
Prineville Hotshots construct handline along the edge of the Newell Road Fire in south-central Washington. (Credit: Newell Fire Information, Facebook) Read As new, large fires have started in Oregon and […]Read More
A field of wheat stands straight up and lovely just uphill from the Snake River outside of Windust, Washington – but tall standing wheat can also mean that the heads […]Read More
Aircraft flying recently on the Tunnel Five Fire in the Columbia River Gorge. (Courtesy: InciWeb) Read There’s a red flag warning and heat advisories in place throughout several areas of […]Read More
Ranchers struggle to keep enough fresh hay and bedding down for new calves and their mothers during the recent blizzards across southeast Oregon and much of the West. (Credit: Angie […]Read More
Even with all the rain and snow in California this winter, it’s been pretty dry in our region, especially in much of eastern Oregon and parts of eastern Washington. Read More
Eastern Washington is in for another hot, dry summer. But – spring rains mean the west side of the state will no longer face a drought.Read More
Mason Douglass leans on one of his thirty seed bins at Tri-State Seed outside of Connell, WA Listen Anna King reports on a serious shortage of seeds for forage crops […]Read More
A tractor and sprayer work a stubble field spraying Roundup. Killing volunteer wheat and cheatgrass will help save moisture in the soil for next year’s crop / Anna King – […]Read More
Dry conditions across Washington have prompted the state’s Department of Ecology to declare a drought emergency. Read More
Temperatures in the Inland Northwest are still hotter than normal, and this week the region will also be more prone to fire danger and smoky air due to drought and wind.Read More
First a drought. Then record heat. Now Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has declared a statewide wildfire state of emergency. Read More
The Northwest is primed for fire season, and not in a good way. East of the Cascades, forecasters say this year could be worse than recent record-breaking fire seasons. Read More
Northwest farmers are pouring on the water to moisten soils ahead of the triple-digit temperatures and possible record highs expected this weekend. Read More
Some stunted wheat fields won’t see the combine this summer. Cattle operators are severely cutting back their herds for lack of grass. Little moisture since February in wide swaths of the Northwest is to blame. And drought is deepening across the West, with federal drought maps showing massive and growing areas of red.Read More
Just about every indicator of drought is flashing red across the western U.S. after a dry winter and warm early spring. The snowpack is at less than half of normal in much of the region. Reservoirs are being drawn down, river levels are dropping and soils are drying out.Read More
Hundreds of farmers who rely on a massive irrigation project that spans the Oregon-California border learned Wednesday they will get a tiny fraction of the water they need amid the worst drought in decades, as federal regulators attempt to balance the needs of agriculture against federally threatened and endangered fish species that are central to the heritage of several tribes.Read More
With nearly two-thirds of the United States abnormally dry or worse, the government’s spring forecast offers little hope for relief, especially in the West where a devastating megadrought has taken root and worsened.Read More
The Northwest could see a cooler and wetter winter this season, according to climate outlook models. Forecasters say it’s likely that a recently developed La Niña weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean will continue. That should lead to above average precipitation in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.Read More
At the start of 2020, the situation looked dismal. After a dry start to the season, Washington and Oregon had less than half the amount of snow they’d normally see in the mountains. Then came the first few weeks of January. Read More
When it comes to surviving the warming climate, scientists are finding that some plants and animals have an edge. The hope is that these "super adapters" can help preserve their species.Read More
According to a new federal drought monitor map, the long-running dry spell finally looks to be over in most of the Northwest. Heavy snows and precipitation in February and early March have made up the difference. That’s good news for ranchers, irrigators, river rafters and salmon. Read More
As drought has deepened across the West, much attention is paid to a colorful map that shows the hardest-hit areas. The scientists who update the map each week face enormous pressure to get it right.Read More
This weekend and into next week the Northwest is set to get several blasts of winter weather. That’s welcome news for Washington and Oregon’s water experts. Both states are well below normal for snowpack for this time of year. Read More
Wildfire activity in the American West is likely to get worse in coming years. A new study out in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences points to the lack of precipitation in the summer as the major driving factor when it comes to increasing fire severity.Read More
The U.S. Drought Monitor says the entire state of Washington is abnormally dry. In Oregon, nearly 90 percent of the state is facing moderate to severe drought.Read More
Oregon has already declared drought in several counties, and two more counties are under review by the governor's office. That's a common theme -- drought is stretching across the Western United States.Read More
A three-year drought has brought on water restrictions — and talk of "Day Zero," when Cape Town, South Africa will run out of water. But for many people in the townships, a short supply is nothing new.Read More
