Providing adequate water for people, fish and wildlife and the environment is one of eight key objectives established in law for the Puget Sound Partnership’s 2020 Action Agenda.
What’s the problem?
During a long, particularly wet
Puget Sound
winter, it’s hard to imagine that a lack of adequate water supply could possibly be an issue in this region.
Not enough water for people. Water shortages are, in fact, a concern for the region’s growing population. Projections indicate that providing enough water for people will be increasingly difficult to accommodate.
Not enough water for salmon. Lack of sufficient stream flows in many areas of the
Puget Sound
basin makes it difficult--if not impossible--for salmon to return to their home waters. Low in-stream flows have already had a huge impact in recovering many salmon species listed as endangered or threatened.
Not enough water for other species and their habitats. Changes to natural ecological processes disrupt the flow of water into once-intact habitats. These changes include:
- Diverting water for uses such as irrigation.
- Withdrawing water from dams.
- Land-use practices such as increased impervious surfaces from development, roads, etc.
- Modifying stream channels.
In addition, climate change is expected to contribute greatly to the projected lack of water supply.
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What’s being done?
Every day, efforts to assure adequate water supply take place throughout the Sound. These efforts involve state, local and federal agencies, tribes, non-profit organizations, businesses, farmers and citizens. The following are some highlights of work underway:
- The Washington Water Acquisition Program is a voluntary program from the Department of Ecology to increase stream flows in eight fish-critical basins in
Puget Sound
: the Cedar-Sammamish, Chambers-Clover, Elwha-Dungeness, Green-Duwamish, Nooksack, Puyallup-White, Quilcene-Snow and Snohomish. Farmers, ranchers and other water-rights holders take part in salmon recovery by selling, leasing or donating their water where critically low stream flows limit fish survival.
-
A regional water supply planning process now underway is an effort to develop substantive technical information regarding current and emerging water resource management issues in and around
King
County
>> Learn more / Get resources about water supply
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