In May of this year, we helped pass a landmark Spokane Ordinance (C36209) that aims to address declining river flows by stopping the overconsumption of aquifer water. This Ordinance has become City Code. Spokane can keep more water in our River in the low-flow seasons and be much smarter by reducing the aquifer water it uses in outdoor irrigation and keeping that water in the Spokane River. The Ordinance was visionary n that it listens to River flows and determines when we need to begin reducing our aquifer footprint and address the peak demand in our city which is primarily outdoor irrigation.
Today we are at a flow of 936 CFS and below the Level II Trigger that asks residents to begin reducing their water footprint and be smart and efficient in their use.
The Spokane Riverkeeper is asking all residents to do their part to be efficient and smart with the use of outdoor water for irrigation. To do so is to protect the Spokane River.
The flow in the Spokane River is below a Level II Water Conservation Trigger. The flow is 936 Cubic Feet per Second (CFS) below downtown Spokane. This is 64 CFS below the water conservation trigger designed to initiate conservation measures to protect your River. These Level II Measures are designed to aid in protecting the flows from dropping dangerously low and from going below the “basement flows” of 850 CFS, a Washington State Instream Flow Level. Initiating water conservation and river flow protection measures will help in preventing the river from dropping to levels that harm the Rivers life, and ecology, as well as diminish its recreational capacity.
The Spokane Riverkeeper is asking all Spokane residents to take this opportunity to protect the river and observe the river flow protection measures. These measures are triggered at Level II (Spokane City Ordinance C36209) when river flows drop below 10000 CFS (at the Spokane Gauge). They include:
· Please do not water outdoor lawns between the hours of 10:00 am and 6:00 pm
· Water outdoors only two days a week
· Water vegetation for two hours on those days you do water
· Avoid watering the hardscapes in your residence
It is established that the over-consumption of aquifer water has a negative impact on the flows of the Spokane River during our long, hot summers. When the River drops below 1000 CFS it is likely to continue to drop below 850 CFS.
We ask that we all take the opportunity to be efficient and smart with our water which is drawn from the Spokane Valley Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. Doing so will help protect your river from getting dangerously low and damaging this living treasure, the Spokane River.
