Drought Emergency Declared For Almost All Of Washington

OLYMPIA, WA — Gov. Jay Inslee has announced a drought emergency for almost all of Washington state.

At a conference announcing the declaration Wednesday, the governor hammered home the message that climate change is to blame for June's record-breaking heat wave, and now the drought emergency that threatens most of the Evergreen State.

"We have to recognize this," said Inslee. "In some sense, this is the summer of climate change, and we are hopeful it is the summer when we rally as a united state against this horrendous threat."

The emergency drought declaration is now in effect for all of Washington, with the exception of the Seattle, Tacoma and Everett metros, the only three Washington metros expected to have adequate water reserves.

Inslee says the declaration may be adjusted as conditions change.

The declaration allows communities to apply for emergency drought permits, which will provide funding to local public entities as they combat drought and wildfire conditions. Right now, the funding will remain limited to just $300,000 for the entire state, though state leaders say more avenues for funding are being explored.

For comparison, Washington spent around $600,000 combatting 2019's drought.

As Laura Watson, Director of the Washington State Department of Ecology explains, forecasters had not predicted a drought while the state legislature was still in session, and as a result less money than is now necessary was set aside for the drought response.

"This year's drought did come as a surprise to many of us," said Watson. "We had robust winter snowpack in the Cascade Mountains, about 132 percent of usual, that led us to believe that water supplies would be adequate this year. Unfortunately, we've had the second-driest spring on record since 1895."

The drought declaration is just the latest effort from the state to tamp down on what is predicted to be an above-average wildfire season. Last week Inslee declared a wildfire state of emergency for all 39 Washington counties, authorizing the National Guard to assist in wildfire responses, and installing a limited burn ban on the state level, including certain campfires and bonfires, land-clearing fires, burning residential yard debris and other outdoor fires.

Already, Washington has seen over 900 fires statewide, which have injured three firefighters and burned more than 140,000 acres of land.

"This is just shy of the total amount of acres that burned in 2019," said Department of Natural Resources Director Hilary Franz. "And we are just in the beginning of July."

Fortunately, firefighters will soon have more resources soon than in years past. During the 2020 legislative session, state lawmakers approved a proposal setting aside $125 million every biennium to pay for more firefighter training equipment, and forest restoration and management.

Some employees also have more tools to deal with the changing climate: starting this week, new emergency protections have gone into place requiring additional safety measures for outdoor workers when temperatures reach certain thresholds.

Finally, the state is warning Washingtonians to prepare in advance for wildfire smoke. Last year's wildfire smoke may have led to nearly 100 deaths in Washington, according to the University of Washington. June's heat wave killed at least 91. The Washington State Department of Emergency Management says it's important that everyone prepare for smoke and poor air quality now, before the smoke arrives.

Related: Washington Urged To Prepare For Wildfire Smoke: Here's How