Reclamation releases August water supply forecast for Yakima basin

YAKIMA, Wash. - The Bureau of Reclamation's August 2026 total water supply available forecast for the Yakima basin indicates that irrigation demands will not be fully met this season because of winter snowpack less than half of normal, contributing to a fourth consecutive year of drought.

Storage in the Yakima basin reservoirs on Aug. 1 was 57% full with 605,000 acre-feet, which is 80% of average. Precipitation for July was 36% of average and for October-July was 112% of average. On Aug. 1, the amount of water in the snowpack, known as snow water equivalent, was 0% of average.

The Yakima Basin Project began prorationing-allocating limited water supplies among users based on priority and entitlement-and storage control on May 21, 2026. Current projections for the July-to-September period show:

• senior water rights holders will receive 100% of their entitlements
• junior water rights holders will receive 58%, an increase of 2% from the early July forecast.

With prolonged dry conditions limiting reservoir inflows, available water will likely fall short of meeting all demands from the basin's $4.5 billion agricultural sector while also maintaining the cool, flowing river conditions needed to support native fish populations.

Reclamation will continue to transparently communicate basin conditions via monthly water supply forecast using the latest data each month to reflect changing conditions as they develop.

"Snowpack and hydrologic forecasts are actively monitored using the best available science to guide water operations across the basin, and Reclamation remains committed to reliable water delivery as the region faces yet another drought year. We value our long-standing partnerships with irrigators cross the Yakima basin, whose collaboration is essential as we work together to manage limited water supply," said Chad Stuart, Reclamation Yakima Field Office manager.

Reclamation manages the water in the five Yakima Project storage reservoirs, along with the basin's unregulated inflows, to fulfill water rights, water contracts and instream flow obligations. Water shortages in the basin are shared equally by the junior water rights, which represent over half of the water rights in the basin.

The August forecast is based on flows, precipitation, snowpack, and reservoir storage as of Aug. 1, along with estimates of future precipitation and river flows. Other future weather conditions that determine the timing of the runoff and the demand for water also are critical in determining stream flows, the extent to which the reservoirs fill, and the water supply for irrigation.

For more information, visit Reclamation's website at https://www.usbr.gov/pn/hydromet/yakima/.