Latest news with #Bumbaco
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Drought emergency hits Pierce County, much of Western Washington
The Washington State Department of Ecology declared a large portion of Pierce County under drought emergency at a press conference Thursday, although Tacoma was spared. The emergency declaration includes a large part of the Puget Sound area and central Cascade mountains, impacting 22 watersheds, said Casey Sixkiller, director of the DOE. The declaration allows the state to use relief tools, such as expediting emergency water right transfers and providing emergency drought grants to public entities — there is $4.5 million available this year to support those actions, he said. 'For most of the people who live in the major metro areas of the Puget Sound region and get their water from Seattle, Tacoma, or Everett, those reservoirs and water supplies are in good shape,' Sixkiller said. 'The utility companies do not expect hardship for their customers.' However, some rural and agricultural areas in the Puget Sound will see impacts, including to the habitats of salmon and other fish, Sixkiller added. Karin Bumbaco, Washington's deputy state climatologist, said above-normal April temperatures and below-normal April and May precipitation have been the main drivers of the drought. April's statewide average temperature was about two degrees Fahrenheit above normal, she said, and snowpack peaked in March, almost two weeks earlier than usual. Bumbaco added that total April and May precipitation was less than 60% of the normal rainfall for most of the state, creating below-normal stream flows in rain-dominated basins. Seasonal forecasts are predicting a likelihood of above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation for the summer, she said, and officials expect those trends to continue in the years to come. 'It is important to remember that we expect droughts to be more severe and more frequent in the future,' Bumbaco said. DOE statewide drought lead Caroline Mellor said a drought means water supply conditions are much worse than normally expected in a watershed. She added the drought declaration does not affect many Eastern Washington counties, which tend to be drier areas of the state, because they may not be drier than normally expected. 'That snowpack is so important as it serves as a natural storage for our water supply,' Mellor said. '.... Now with these earlier melt-offs, and lower-than-normal precipitation, that is a major concern for impacts to fish, and agriculture, and potentially drinking water in smaller systems later in the summer.' Bumbaco also said the likelihood of wildfire spread is higher with the ongoing drought conditions. According to the National Interagency Fire Center's June outlook, the Eastern half of Washington is considered above normal for significant wildland fire potential — current estimates broaden that designation to cover most of Washington in July, and to completely encompass the state in August and September. In April, a drought advisory was initially declared for a large portion of Pierce County, but not the Tacoma area. Previously, in April 2024, an emergency drought declaration was also in place for most of the state, except for the Seattle, Tacoma and Everett areas. In 2023, Pierce County was involved in a statewide drought advisory, but did not see a drought emergency declared. This is the third consecutive year in which snowpack deficits or early melt have impacted the water supply in Washington, Sixkiller said. 'We've declared drought in six of the past ten years. Low water supplies are becoming routine in Washington, and that includes on the wetter West side of our state,' Sixkiller added. 'Washington's water supply infrastructure is simply designed for precipitation and temperature patterns that are changing and are no longer reliable.'
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Whatcom County's hot, dry summer forecast has many officials worried
Whatcom County and the rest of Western Washington could be in for a warmer-than-normal summer with a greater chance of wildfires, smoke-filled skies and possibly extreme heat as relatively lackluster La Niña shifts into a neutral pattern, according to a variety of forecasts. Meteorologists, climate scientists, firefighting officials and others are bracing for a season that could affect anything from air quality and water availability to the number of salmon that survive long enough to spawn. Those predictions are the result of data from various sources, along with the trend of warmer and drier summers when a neutral phase follows a weak La Niña winter, said Matthew Dehr, wildland fire meteorologist for the state Department of Natural Resources. 'The summers for the past 10 to 15 years have been hotter and drier than the previous 10 years. Previous neutral years have been warmer and drier. We see those patterns and they tend to repeat themselves,' Dehr told The Herald in a phone interview. Adding to the concern for summer is that mountain snowpack is at 64% of normal for this time of year in the northern Puget Sound region. Recent weeks have been unseasonably dry, Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco told The Bellingham Herald. 'Low snowpack is concerning. It isn't great because last year we also had a low snowpack,' Bumbaco said in a phone interview. Lack of rain and low snowpack could affect the amount of water that farmers and cities can use. It can cause lower water levels on the Nooksack River, which harms salmon, especially spring-run Chinook. It also affects the moisture content of soil. Of further concern is a drought advisory that's in effect for parts of Western Washington, including Whatcom County, Bumbaco said. The U.S. Drought Monitor puts Western Washington in an abnormally dry phase but doesn't predict drought. June 1 is the start of meteorological summer, the date that weather forecasters use as a seasonal benchmark. Weather from June through August is likely to be above normal, according to meteorologists at AccuWeather, a commercial weather-forecasting service. Long-range forecasts from the National Weather Service and its Climate Prediction Center draw the same conclusion. 'Temperatures as a whole from June through August will be above the historical average,' AccuWeather said. Summer in Western Washington is traditionally the warmest and driest season already, with average daytime temperatures in the low 70s for July and August and monthly rainfall totals of an inch or less in those months as measured at Bellingham International Airport. All that adds up to a 'significant wildland fire potential' this summer, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, which tracks major fires across the country. Major wildfires generally affect Bellingham and Whatcom County by creating smoky skies and unhealthy breathing conditions, Bumbaco said. Forested communities such as Sudden Valley and Glacier face a higher threat from a warm, dry summer, however. 'Watching the potential outlooks, what they tell us is that conditions will be more conducive for fire spread,' Bumbaco said. Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove told The Herald in a phone interview that Washington is prepared for fire season, despite uncertainty at the federal level. State cuts wildfire prevention funds in half. Is WA ready for the summer fire season? 'We're confident that we're going to be ready to roll for the 2025 season,' Upthegrove said. A new website, Wildfire Ready, can help residents plan for wildfire season. Residents also can visit for information regarding when smoke could be affecting their area. 'It can make a difference between losing a home and having fire pass you by,' Upthegrove said.
