Climate Impacts Group

The 19th annual Oregon-Washington Water Year Meeting: 2024 Recap and 2025 Outlook will be held as two virtual morning meetings. There is no cost to attend but you are required to register. 

The goal of this meeting is to share and gather information regarding climate impacts of the 2024 water year. The warmer than normal winter, lack of Washington snowpack and subsequent drought development, the changing drought conditions in Oregon, and the hot July will be topics of discussion. This meeting will also offer the opportunity to learn from others about mitigation actions that were taken through group discussion. Forecast experts will provide expectations for 2025, including discussion of what the switch to La Niña in the tropical Pacific means for the region. 

An end-of-water year survey is available for participants (and others) to record impacts and actions taken to minimize those impacts, which will also be discussed during the workshop. Both the survey and the workshop will help inform an annual PNW Water Year Impacts Assessment.

We encourage participation from a wide range of sectors including utilities, agriculture, and forestry. A detailed agenda will be available soon. 

This event is hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, and the Office of the Washington State Climatologist with planning committee participation from the Nez Perce Tribe Water Resources Division, Oregon State University’s Oregon Climate Service, the Oregon Water Resources Department, the USDA Northwest Climate Hub, and the Washington Department of Ecology.

Schedule

Day 1: Tuesday, October 29, 2024 9 am-12:15 pm

Day 1 will feature a recap of the weather and seasonal climate of water year 2024, an introduction to impacts reported during the water year, and group discussion of sector-specific impacts. 

Day 2: Wednesday, October 30, 2024 9 am-12:15 pm

Day 2 will feature stories of sector-specific 2024 water year impacts, and the 2024-25 winter outlook, including what La Niña means for the upcoming winter.

REGISTER

AGENDA

Take our Survey and Help Inform the Water Year Meeting and Impacts Assessment!

Water year 2024 is now in the books, and total precipitation varied across the region. How was the Northwest (WA, OR, or ID) impacted? The goal of this survey is to gather information about impacts that occurred and response actions that were implemented during the 2023 water year (October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023) due to abnormally dry or abnormally wet conditions. This information will inform the Oregon/Washington Water Year meeting and PNW Water Year Impacts Assessment.

We welcome reports of impacts from those working in the water, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, hydropower, and recreation sectors, as well as tribal, local, state, and federal agency staff that work with these sectors.

SURVEY

The 18th annual Oregon-Washington Water Year Meeting: 2023 Recap and 2024 Outlook will be held as two virtual morning meetings on Wednesday, November 1 and Thursday, November 2. There is no cost to attend but you are required to register. 

The goal of this meeting is to share and gather information regarding climate impacts of the 2023 water year. The extended summer of 2022 into fall, drought development across Washington and northwest Oregon, drought improvement over southeastern Oregon, and rapid spring snowmelt will be topics of discussion. This meeting will also offer the opportunity to learn from others about mitigation actions that were taken through group discussion. Forecast experts will provide expectations for 2024, including discussion of what El Niño means for the region. 

Day 1 will feature a recap of the weather and seasonal climate of water year 2023, group discussion of sector-specific impacts, and stories from the agriculture, fishery, and water sectors.

Day 2 will feature the 2023-24 winter outlook, including what El Niño means for the upcoming winter, and introduce a new tool to assess drought recovery. There will also be two more in-depth retrospectives on winter 2022-23 in regards to the precipitation pattern and streamflow forecasts.

An end-of-water year survey is now available for participants to record impacts and actions taken to minimize those impacts, which will also be discussed during the workshop. Both the survey and the workshop will help inform an annual PNW Water Year Impacts Assessment. See below for more details.

This event is hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group, and the Office of the Washington State Climatologist with planning committee participation from the Nez Perce Tribe Water Resources Division, Oregon State University’s Oregon Climate Service, the WA Department of Fish and Wildlife, and USDA Northwest Climate Hub. We encourage participation from a wide range of sectors including utilities, agriculture, and forestry. 

Event Details: 

Wednesday, November 1, 2023, 9 am-12:15 pm

Thursday, November 2, 2023, 9 am-12:15 pm

Virtual

AGENDA      REGISTER

Take our Survey and Help Inform the Water Year Meeting and Impacts Assessment!

Water year 2023 is now in the books, and will likely be remembered as a dry year overall. How was the Northwest (WA, OR, or ID) impacted? The goal of this survey is to gather information about impacts that occurred and response actions that were implemented during the 2023 water year (October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023) due to abnormally dry or abnormally wet conditions. This information will inform the Oregon/Washington Water Year meeting and PNW Water Year Impacts Assessment.

We welcome reports of impacts from those working in the water, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, hydropower, and recreation sectors, as well as tribal, local, state, and federal agency staff that work with these sectors.

WATER YEAR SURVEY