The third year in a row, WA. state will see a drought emergency

It's always difficult to be a farmer, but it's even more difficult with a water shortage. The Washington State Department of Ecology has announced that we are now going into the third drought season in three years. 

According to seattletimes.com,
‘Washington is once more under a drought emergency, state officials announced Tuesday, marking the third such declaration in as many years and underscoring the damage wrought by year-after-year droughts.
Typically the start of April marks the peak of Washington’s snowpack season, but west of the Cascades and Central Washington are lagging behind, spelling trouble for the year ahead.’ 

It's called a drought declaration. 

A drought declaration not only creates awareness and a warning to communities over coming water restrictions. It also releases about $4.5 million in funds for people, businesses, and communities in the area 

Predictions are that things are going to be especially difficult for Portions of Benton County, and all of Kittitas and Yakima counties. Seattle, Tacoma and Everett are in pretty good shape with water reserves. However, other Western and Eastern Washington counties are in what is called a drought advisory. 

There is a drought advisory for Pierce, King, Skagit, Snohomish and Whatcom counties on the West side of the state, and Okanogan and Chelan counties on the east side of the state. 

A drought declaration for a community often means that farmers will be dealing with short growing seasons or no growing season at all. 

Washington could now see a “snow drought” Four years in every decade according to the Washington state Department of Ecology. 

For those ranchers and farmers that draw their irrigation water from the Columbia River this will be a minor problem but other aquifers in the area might be in serious trouble. 

Reservoirs in the yakima river basin are reportedly down to about 59% of normal and the Roza Irrigation District within the basin is reporting might get down to about 38%. Odds are that farmers in that irrigation district are probably going to have to shut their water off for at least 10 days, like they did last year, in order to make it with possible additional restrictions to follow.  

This could be a very tough year for farmers with water restrictions.

WA faces drought emergency for a third year after middling snowpack | The Seattle Times
WA declares statewide drought emergency following poor snowpack | The Seattle Times
WA drought has already led some to shut off water to farmers | The Seattle Times