01Aug 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Health Advisory Issued for Harmful Algal Bloom at Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir

Idaho News
Magic Valley Times-News The Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir has shown an elevated level of cyanotoxin, according to the Department of Environmental Quality, on Monday. A public health advisory has been issued warning people to avoid contact with the water. Discovery of elevated levels of a cyanotoxin —  a harmful algal bloom — at Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir has prompted the South Central Public Health District to issue a public health advisory. Recent tests from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality shows levels of a cyanotoxin, microcystin, are now at unhealthy levels in the reservoir. Exposure to this toxin can be harmful to people, pets, and livestock. When recreating at Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir the public is advised to take the following steps to protect their health: Avoid exposure to water…
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25Jul 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Idaho Department of Water Resources won’t shut off groundwater users – at this point

Idaho News
By Clark Corbin; Idaho Capital Sun The south fork of the Snake River runs for more than 60 miles across southeastern Idaho. (Courtesy of Bureau of Land Management) The Idaho Department of Water Resources won’t be shutting off the water for hundreds of groundwater users pumping off the Eastern Snake Plan Aquifer in Idaho at this point in the summer. Last week, Idaho Department of Water Resources Director Gary Spackman found that there was no water demand shortfall for surface water users based on mid-summer water supplies and crop demand, the department announced in a press release issued Thursday. As a result of Spackman’s decision, it will not be necessary to curtail, or shut off the water, for the junior groundwater users, according to the press release. That’s good news…
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20Jul 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Water use soaring

Idaho News
By Bill Buley; Coeur d'Alene-Post Falls Press A sprinkler sprays water on a Coeur d'Alene lawn on Monday. Bill Buley COEUR d'ALENE — In June, the city of Coeur d'Alene pumped 780.8 million gallons of water.  If that sounds like a lot, it is.  That was 350 million gallons more than the same month last year when the city pumped 430.8 million gallons. Terry Pickel, Coeur d'Alene water department director, attributes the soaring water use to hot and dry conditions and residents' efforts to keep lawns green by running sprinklers. July is shaping up much the same.  "I would certainly expect to see a significant July increase as temps are soaring," he wrote in an email to The Press on Monday. The city is considering a water conservation ordinance to…
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13Jul 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Summer heat can cause dangerous conditions in Idaho’s rivers and lakes

Idaho News, Research
By Drew Pendleton; Dept. of Health and Welfare As temperatures increase, so does the likelihood of a cyanobacterial harmful algal bloom (cyanoHAB). CyanoHABs are caused by cyanobacteria, and the toxins they produce are harmful to humans, pets, livestock, and wildlife. CyanoHABs can change and increase rapidly if conditions are right. They favor warm water, sunlight, and specific nutrients in the water. These blooms can last throughout the summer into fall. The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) samples and analyzes Idaho water bodies for cyanoHABs. The test results are provided to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (DHW) and local public health districts, and they decide if a health advisory should be issued. For information on advisories, visit the DHW’s Idaho Recreational Water Advisories map for more information. The…
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12Jun 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Reservoirs across Idaho nearing or at capacity

Idaho News
By Ruth Brown; Idaho Capital Sun Anderson Ranch Reservoir. The Upper Snake River Basin’s reservoir capacity is nearing its limit as the Portneuf River continues to flood, but the National Weather Service isn’t concerned about spillover from reservoirs in southeast Idaho. Bureau of Reclamation data from Wednesday showed the Henry’s Lake and Grassy Lake reservoirs are at 100% capacity, while most of the reservoirs in the Upper Snake system are between 91 and 98% capacity. Milner Reservoir is only 74% full, and Jackson Lake Reservoir is 71% full. Collectively, the Upper Snake River System is at 88% of capacity, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. There is a minor flood warning in place along the Portneuf River at Pocatello, affecting Bannock County. But Tim Axford, meteorologist at the National Weather…
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22May 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

NRCS bulletin on refining FY24 source water protection local priorities

National News
Deirdre White; ASDWA The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has released its new national bulletin on “Refining Source Water Protection Local Priorities for FY 2024.” The purpose of the bulletin is to provide an opportunity for NRCS State Conservationists to work with partners (including state source water protection programs) to update the high priority source water protection (SWP) areas in each state. This bulletin is issued each year to refine the areas and continue to implement the provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill that requires NRCS to dedicate at least 10 percent of its conservation program funds for source water protection. State source water protection programs are encouraged to contact and continue working with your NRCS State Conservationists office and State Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) and/or the source water…
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12May 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Local elementary students learn everything about H2O at Water Awareness Festival

Idaho News
By Seth Ratliff; Local News 8 IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - Organized mayhem at Tautphaus Park as fifth and sixth graders gather for the Water Awareness Week Festival. The event was put on by the Department of Environmental Quality to teach kids the importance of water while having an explosive good time. "The hopes is that they can they can see how fun science is," DEQ scientist Rick Jensen said. "Understanding the special properties that water has and that it really is a special resource and worth preserving." The festival included presentations and activities from the National Weather Service, Idaho Departments of Environmental Quality, Water Resources, and Fish & Game and more. "It's really effective for us to come and  reach a lot of kids at once..." Fish and Game…
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04May 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Rainstorms are moving into Boise. Will there be more flooding? Here’s what to expect

Idaho News
By Shaun Goodwin; Idaho Statesman Boiseans have been spoiled the past few days with temperatures in the 80s and no rain, but good things never last forever. Starting Thursday and continuing through Saturday afternoon, about half an inch of rain is expected to fall in the city, and high temperatures will drop to the mid-60s over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service. “We’re going to be kind of unstable (Thursday) and we could be seeing some thunderstorms,” Chuck Redman, a meteorologist in Boise, told the Idaho Statesman. “And then the main low-pressure system itself, the main weather maker, is going to be coming over us on Friday.” Redman expects a consistent and dreary pattern for Boise, while the mountains north of the Treasure Valley will be subject to…
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03Apr 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

U.S. Geological Survey to measure water levels in southern Idaho’s Snake River Plain

Idaho News
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…
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31Mar 2023 by Nicole Rinaldi

Idaho experiences ‘impressive’ water year

Idaho News
By Carol Ryan Duman; Capital Press After years of water supply shortages and drought, basins in southeastern Idaho have received well above normal precipitation this winter. Not only are all basins well above normal for precipitation and snow water equivalent, but recent snowfall has brought record to near-record snow depths as well, the Natural Resources Conservation Service reported in its March 1 Water Supply Outlook report. “With over a month to go in the snow accumulation season, there is plenty of time for more snow to fall in this already impressive water year,” NRCS hydrologists said. Since the last report, snowpack percentages compared to the 30-year median snowpack slightly increased in the Panhandle, Clearwater, Salmon Falls and Willow-Blackfoot-Portneuf basins and decreased in the rest of the state. “In other words,…
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