Locke declares drought emergency

With dozens of Washington streams recording historic low flows and the state's agriculture industry in a panic over water supply, Gov. Gary Locke officially declared a drought emergency in the Evergreen State today.

``This is already the worst drought in our state since 1977, and it's only March,'' Locke said. ``We'll probably beat that record soon.''

NOTE: This article has been updated since it was originally published in the newspaper.

Locke drove his point home by making the annoucement in the now-dry swimming area of Alder Lake, a hydropower source about 35 miles southeast of Olympia. The lake is not completely dry, but the area where Locke stood is usually under 12 feet of water.

The declaration, which frees up limited emergency money and removes some legal barriers to buying, selling and transferring water, will take effect immediately.

The announcement is no surprise to city officials already mulling car-washing and lawn-watering bans; to hop and tree fruit farmers in the Yakima Valley who've been told there won't be enough water for their crops; or to fish biologists who have begun to utter the once unthinkable phrase "localized extinctions."

"This is just really horrifying, said Bill Tweit, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife's drought specialist. "(Water levels) are just going to get lower. We're concerned about bull and western slope cutthroat trout."

Yesterday, more than two dozen streams in Western Washington recorded their lowest flows ever for the day, according to U.S. Geological Service data, and not a single stream registered 100 percent of average flow at this time of year. The Columbia River runoff at The Dalles is 50 percent of normal.

For the state, snow pack is 65 percent of normal. Tweit, who has been studying local fish populations since 1974, said the low flows "are the worst I've ever seen."

Locke's declaration sets in motion three temporary changes in the way the state manages its water supply.

First, it allows the Department of Ecology to issue emergency water permits to those who have rights but not enough water. With an emergency permit, they then can get water from other sources, such as pumping from aquifers, that otherwise would be off-limits.

More importantly, it allows water sales and transfers between farmers and cities with water to spare. Transfers normally must come under public scrutiny with notices and public hearings. Not so if a drought is declared.

And it opens up a $5.1 million state fund to purchase water rights, improve irrigation and buy water outright. State officials acknowledged yesterday that the money won't go very far.

Expanded water transfer capacity is going to be vital for state agriculture, said Bill Brookreson, deputy director of the state Department of Agriculture. The most critical need likely will be in the Yakima Irrigation Project, where 600,000 acres of apples, pears, grapes and hops are grown. Not only are these crops heavy water users, but unlike row crops, orchards must be irrigated to survive.

"If you don't have water you don't just lose this year's crop, but possibly your orchard," he said. Some farmers have been told that only 6 percent of their typical supply will be available.

Douglas MacKinnon, a spokesman for the Hop Growers of America, said, "there's a lot of concern out there" that the Washington farmers who grow 78 percent of the nation's hop supply, worth $95 million annually, will be devastated.

Easier water transfers likely will also be used by cities. While Seattle water officials currently say the city has a sufficient supply, smaller municipalities are not so confident.

Kent, for example, normally siphons 100 percent of its water from a local aquifer and other supplies. Water officials there expect the city to purchase 25 percent of its supply if conditions don't improve.

"We are projecting a 3.5 to 4.5 million gallon-a-day shortage," said Don Wickstrom, director of public works. Kent is looking at mandatory conservation including prohibiting car washing and lawn watering.

Said Tweit: "Everyone's worried."

P-I reporter Mike Lewis can be reached at 206-448-8027 or mikelewis@seattle-pi.com