By Mia Maldonado; Idaho Capital Sun The U.S. Geological Survey announced it will soon begin measuring groundwater levels across southern Idaho, according to a Monday press release. Survey employees working with the Idaho Department of Water Resources and the Bureau of Reclamation will measure groundwater levels in more than 1,400 private and public wells in the eastern Snake River Plain between April 3-14. The region’s aquifer is the area’s primary source of drinking water and irrigation for 1 million acres of farmland in the state aquaculture industry, according to the news release. The collected data will help water experts understand the status of the aquifer ahead of the irrigation season, and the IDWR will use the data to improve its computer model of the aquifer. Water technicians collect aquifer measurements…
WATERSHED WEEKENDS Free family fun! Go with the flow to the WaterShed every third Saturday of each month from 10AM – 1PM for fun activities the whole family can enjoy! No pre-registration required. BLOCKFest™ SATURDAY, March 18th - FREE ACTIVITIES 10 AM – 1 PM Join us today for free STEM activities at BLOCKFest™ building stations. KEVA® planks, large foam blocks, small counting cubes and more will be available around the exhibit hall for children of all ages to build and play. You can also create fun mosaic art inspired by the blocks and cubes. Finally, enjoy our River Campus water feature as it's turned back on for the season!
By Brad Carlson; Capital Press Palisades Reservoir on the Upper Snake River in eastern Idaho. Comstock Upper Snake River managers are watching the basin’s important east side, where headwater areas so far have seen comparatively less benefit from recent Pacific storms. Snowpack to date for the Oct. 1 water year is looking good, but total precipitation in the east is trailing the other smaller sub-basins, said Brian Stevens, area water operations manager for the U.S.Bureau of Reclamation’s Upper Snake Field Office in Heyburn, Idaho. “The eastern side of the Upper Snake basin is by far the largest contributor to runoff volumes in the system, and we still need above-average precipitation for the rest of the winter and spring — into late June — to have potential to fill the system,”…
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $263 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to the City of Boise, Idaho, to support its Water Renewal Services Capital Investments Project. With this WIFIA loan, EPA is helping the City of Boise improve wastewater treatment processes to protect the Boise River’s water quality and ultimately recharge the drought burdened Boise River with high quality effluent. “Maintaining and upgrading water infrastructure is essential for the health of a community like Boise, which is a fast-growing city struggling with drought,” EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox said. “Thanks to this WIFIA loan, the City of Boise can upgrade wastewater treatment technology to better safeguard the Boise River and even help recharge its water supply while providing good-paying jobs.”…
Capital Press The Idaho Water Resource Board’s Milepost 31 Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer recharge site. Projects adding to recharge capacity are among those funded by the board Nov. 18. Boosting aquifer levels and improving irrigation delivery efficiency are the focus of Idaho Water Resource Board moves to financially support several projects in the state’s south-central and southeast regions. The board Nov. 18 approved a $14.1 million loan to Raft River Recharge Group. Plans call for building a pump station on the Snake River, a 13-mile pipeline, and recharge basins to add water to a declining aquifer in a state-designated critical groundwater management area. The declining aquifer levels are a key factor in intermittent surface flows on the Raft River, a Snake tributary. Most farmers are now pumping groundwater for irrigation,…
Spokane Public Radio The new study says heavy metals, phosphorus levels are steadily decreasing. Doug Nadvornick/Spokane Public Radio A National Academy of Sciences draft report concludes the quality of the water in Lake Coeur d’Alene has improved over the years. The report was shared this week at a symposium in Coeur d’Alene. Dan McCracken from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality says the study found that the main sources of pollution — heavy metals and phosphorus — are entering the lake at lower levels than in the past. “Although we are still a long ways away from where we want to be, we’re starting to see some water quality improvements, just in the last five-to-10 years. Metals loading, coming from the upper Coeur d’Alene River, has consistently been improving since…
The Water Resources Seminar Series is open to all interested professionals, legislators, water supply managers, local government representatives, attorneys, students and interested public. Join us from anywhere on Zoom at: https://uidaho.zoom.us/j/88575032383
By Kip Hall; The Spokesman Review Kayakers paddle slowly down the Little Spokane River where it flows along State Route 291 and near where it flows into the Spokane River in this July 2021 photo. River flows that year were among their lowest over the past five years, according to United States Geological Survey data, and flows this year are approaching those levels after the river was roaring from heavy snowmelt and rain earlier this spring. (Jesse Tinsley/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW) The organization tasked with protecting the Spokane River is urging city residents to reduce their water use, including watering lawns and plants just twice per week, during the final weeks of summer as flows plunge to droughtlike levels. “We had all this water. We had this great snowpack,” said Jerry White…
By Carli Baum; East Idaho News SALMON RIVER — On a chilly morning, I’m awake and alert as I can be. I’m strapped into a helicopter seat, flight helmet on, doors off, safety checks done, GPS in one hand, radio in the other and a data sheet secured to my thigh. The excitement grows as the rotor blades pick up momentum and start humming loudly. We lift off from the ground and begin our trip into the backcountry. As I look over the wilderness mountains, my heart is pounding, I feel like a fish out of water and think, “How did I end up here? I’m a fish biologist!” As fisheries biologists, we are used to walking along a streambed looking down to see what fish we can find. However,…
By Anthony Kuipers; Moscow-Pullman Daily News Containment booms are seen Tuesday in the south fork of the Palouse River in Pullman, after approximately 1,200 gallons of "red dye" diesel spilled Monday from a failed above-ground fuel storage tank at Four Star Supply. Zach Wilkinson/Daily News. Cleanup efforts continued Tuesday after approximately 1,200 gallons of diesel spilled into the south fork of the Palouse River on Monday in Pullman. According to a Washington Department of Ecology news release, an above-ground fuel storage tank at Four Star Supply developed a crack and leaked the “red dye” diesel into the water. Fuel and sheening was observed 1,000 feet downriver from the source. Four Star Supply pumped remaining fuel from the tank, which has a 10,000-gallon capacity, and initiated nearby cleanup and protective measures…
