Washington Water Watch: August 2021

Dear friends,

As the dry, hot weather continues, we are increasing water conservation efforts, protecting streamflows, and keeping an eye on our water resources.

Drought and fire season started early, putting our water resources in dire shape. Fifty-nine percent of the state is in severe to exceptional drought. King5 reported by mid-August, Washington and Oregon had already seen more than 20 times more land burned by wildfires this year than by mid-August last year. More needs to be done to protect our waters and adapt to our changing climate.

We are also keeping an eye on COVID-19 and taking necessary precautions to keep our staff and community safe. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on our survey about attending events. We decided it was prudent to reschedule Celebrate Water. The new date is December 9th. We are hopeful circumstances will improve and we will be able to celebrate at Ivar’s Salmon House then.

CELP was greatly saddened to hear about the passing of Lorraine Loomis. Our hearts go out to her family, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, and all who had the honor of knowing her.

In this issue you will find our latest comments to Ecology, our 2020 Annual Report, a tribute to Lorraine Loomis, information on water shortages in the West, Water & Fish News, and event details for Celebrate Water, the One River, Ethics Matter Conference, and AWRA-WA’s Annual Conference.

Sincerely,
Trish Rolfe

Executive Director

trolfe@celp.org

Read the full newsletter: https://conta.cc/3yAipIc