PORTLAND, Ore. – Army water managers will hold two virtual information sessions on Tuesday, May 19, to discuss severe drought conditions and the summer forecast for the Willamette Valley’s 13 reservoirs.
According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, it is the sixth driest in terms of water year precipitation to-date since 1980 in the Willamette Valley. Low rainfall and snowpack have created widespread drought conditions across the region, impacting the efforts to refill the reservoirs and keep them full.
“It’s always a delicate dance to balance all the Congressional purposes of these dams and reservoirs,” Hart said. “Because of these historic lows, it’s even more challenging to achieve a balance between purposes like recreation, hydropower, irrigation, wildlife habitat, and downstream river flows for water quality and fish survival.”…