www.hoodrivernews.com
Hood River News, Saturday, June 27, 2015
A11
Photo by Patrick Mulvihill
JOHN BUCKLEY, East Fork Irrigation District manager, speaks before the Hood River County Board of
Commissioners at a meeting Wednesday at Westside Fire District’s Rockford Station. The day’s topic:
countywide drought emergency.
D ROUGHT
Continued from Page A1
Photo by Jody Thompson
D ETHMAN R IDGE C RASH
Hood River County Sheriff’s Department is still looking for the driver of this vehicle that went
off a 50-foot embankment Tuesday on Dethman Ridge Road near Odell Highway. Wy’east Fire
District responded after a motorist saw skid marks and flattened foliage at 5:22 p.m. The car
was unoccupied and no one was in the area. Firefighters and deputies could find no one, so
thermal imaging devices were used to check the brush, but no one was found, according to
chief Greg Borton.
OSU, Soil and Water host
‘Landscape with Less Water’
Oregon State University
Extension Service, Columbia
Gorge Master Gardeners,
Hood River Soil and Water
Conservation District and
Hood River Watershed
Group will put on a series of
presentations on water con-
serving landscapes in the
Learning Garden at the Ex-
tension grounds.
The first will be held July
11 beginning at 9 a.m.
The presentations will
take place in the gardens and
will begin at 9 a.m. with
highlighted features to in-
clude bioswales, a native
plants garden, hellstrip gar-
den, herb garden, and water
efficient lawns, followed by a
primer on drip irrigation
from 11 to 11:30 a.m.
This event will be held at
the OSU Mid-Columbia Agri-
cultural Research and Exten-
sion Center, 2990 Experiment
Station Drive, Hood River,
and is free and open to the
public.
Follow Tucker Road a mile
south of Hood River, and
turn just south of Your Party
and Rental Center.
Call 541-386-3343 for more
information.
years.
The meeting, held at West-
side Fire District’s Rockford
Station at 4250 Barrett Drive,
summoned city and county
leaders, as well as experts in
water management, forestry
and fire. The audience num-
bered roughly 40.
Barb Ayers, Hood River
County Emergency Pro-
grams Manager, opened the
morning’s discussion by de-
scribing the magnitude of
the countywide drought.
“Every single forecast at
the state and federal level
shows this is a long-term
drought,” said Ayers.
“They’re our lowest levels
since the early ‘80s and un-
less some miracle comes
along, it’s not gonna go away
soon.”
Ayers said the record low
snowpack and stream levels
affect agriculture and fire
danger most profoundly.
“What’s called ‘potable’ or
drinking water is in good
shape. But our irrigation dis-
tricts are deeply concerned,”
Ayers said.
John Buckley, East Fork Ir-
rigation District Manager,
said local irrigation districts
depend on snowmelt and
stream levels. His district
covers 9,494 irrigated acres,
and is forecasted to have
mandatory reductions by
next month.
“Water is survival. It’s a
major aspect of surviving fi-
nancially … we all have to do
our share,” said Buckley.
Snowpack on Mt. Hood is
virtually non-existent —
roughly 5 percent of its
usual level, as measured at
the Red Hill SNOTEL site in
April. The Hood River is run-
ning at 40 percent of the av-
erage level, according to the
U.S. Geological Survey gauge
at Tucker Bridge.
All three major irrigation
districts of the Hood River
Valley — East Fork, Middle
Fork and Farmers’ Irriga-
tion District — have request-
ed a 25 percent reduction of
rates for their users.
“The (benefit) with the
drought declaration is to give
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Allison is officially a Freshman!
H EAT
Continued from Page A2
■ Grill outside or use a mi-
crowave or toaster oven. A
toaster oven uses one-third
to one-half as much energy
as a regular oven and releas-
es less heat into the home.
■ Turn off heat-generat-
ing devices when not in use,
including lamps, televisions
and computers.
Think for the long term
■ Plant deciduous trees to
shade the south side of your
house. Well-placed trees can
reduce cooling needs as
much as 20 percent, and an
air conditioner operating in
the shade can use as much as
10 percent less electricity.
■ Insulate floors, walls and
attics to keep cooler in sum-
mer and warmer in winter.
Seal and insulate air condi-
tioning ducts that r un
through unconditioned
spaces.
■ Get your air conditioner
tuned up annually.
■ Consider a new air con-
ditioner, heat pump and
other appliances — new mod-
els are more efficient and
may lower your electric bill.
IN
C OOL
Cooling center hours are 8
a.m. to 10 p.m. The fire hall is
located at 18th and May
streets.
At the downtown library,
people coming to get out of
the heat will get air condi-
tioning, access to water, and
lots of comfortable places to
sit down and rest. Thanks to
Providence Hood River
Memorial Hospital, the li-
brary also will hand out free
refillable water bottles when
the outside temperature is 95
degrees or hotter, according
to Library Director Buzzy
Nielsen.
These bottles can be filled
at the library or various
other locations downtown,
including the new hydration
station at Shortt Supply,
open during store hours.
There are also drinking
fountains located at the new
City bathroom facility on
State Street.
■
At the fire hall, enjoy free
wireless Internet, plenty of
seating, air conditioning,
and drinking fountains with
special bottle fillers to refill
your water bottles. If you do
not have a water bottle, the
department will have some
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L ICENSED & C ERTIFIED
BUSIN E SS
A
T HE
Continued from Page A1
us some tools for our depart-
ment that can help ease the
drought for landowners,”
said Bob Wood, Ore gon
Water District 3 Manager.
Wood leads state water op-
erations in a 3,000 square-
mile district that includes
Hood River and Wasco coun-
ties.
Wood explained that tem-
porary emergency water use
permits are faster and cheap-
er than typical applications.
What usually takes months
to get through a state appli-
cation process can now be
conducted before the end of
summer, he said.
“Basically, it’s giving a
better access to water sup-
plies to support our irriga-
tion districts,” said Ayers.
“The money wagon isn’t
gonna come driving into
Hood River. But (a drought
declaration) can help way
speed up, expedite, th e
process and lower the fees on
transferring water rights or
moving things around.”
P U B L I C AT I O N O F
HO O D R I V E R N E W S
J U LY 2 0 1 5
ess
in Bus i n
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
EMPLOYEE Amber Strangstalien works the desk at the Hood River
Library, which offers a cool place during the heat wave, and water
bottles for those who need them, courtesy of Providence.
on hand so you can stay hy-
drated. Fire chief Devon
Wells said Hood River Fire
and EMS encourages the
community to use due dili-
gence when venturing out-
side.
“Drink plenty of water,
stand in the shade, use sun-
screen every few hours, and
remember pets and chil-
dren,” he said. “Please enjoy
the weather and all of the
recreation events available
this summer, but please re-
member it’s hot and to take
care of yourself, loved ones,
and friends to prevent heat
related injuries,” Wells said.
■
The pool will be open Fri-
day from 1-5 p.m. and 6:30 to 8
p.m. for $1 open swim, and
again on Saturday, 1-5 with
regular admission.
Sunday and Monday open
swim hours are 1-5 p.m. and
lap swim times are weekdays
at 8 a.m. and on Saturday and
Sunday at 10 a.m.
EWS
IVER N
H OOD R
ISE
OF THE
E NTERPR
ATION
ALMON
PUBLIC
14
W HITE S
JULY 20
AND THE
!
E
C
N
A
H
C
T
S
A
L RESERVE
A
Barb Smith
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photo
Page 50
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