Water on hold for junior users on the Methow River in Washington
8/10/2024 12:29:50 PM
CATEGORIES:
Agriculture
Relief, Response & Restrictions
Water Supply & Quality
AFFECTED AREAS:
Chelan County, WA
Douglas County, WA
Okanogan County, WA
Start Date: 7/22/2024
- End Date: 10/1/2024
Ninety-eight water users on the Methow River have not been able to draw water from the river to irrigate their fields since July 22 because the Methow River has been below minimum flows. Those junior water users have to call a hotline before watering, and conditions were not likely to change until October, according to the state Department of Ecology’s watermaster for Okanogan, Chelan and Douglas counties. State law gives priority to the river over irrigation rights established after 1976, when the instream rule was set.
Methow Valley News (Twisp, Wash.), Aug 9, 2024
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