Will predicted El Nino quench NW drought’s thirst?

A bone-dry summer is ending — leaving many looking to the skies to see if winter will replenish what’s been lost.

“It could be devastating, if it’s below average,” Deschutes Basin Watermaster Jeremy Giffin said Wednesday. “Next year could be really bad.”

Giffin is talking about desperately needed snow and rain. A new NASA study shows Oregon is the driest state in the country, with nearly 70 percent of the region in extreme drought. Jefferson, Crook and Deschutes counties were granted drought disaster declarations and state of emergency status earlier this year.

Reservoirs around the High Desert are low, and streams are now trickling.

But Mother Nature just may show some mercy. There are predictions of a strong El Nino to bring a wet winter.

“We are hopeful that it does spring some extreme precipitation events — which would definitely help fill those reservoirs,” Giffin said. “But it’s a little gray (area) to how that’s going to spell out for us this winter.”

The bad news: It likely will not be enough.

“We’re seeing Wickiup Reservoir the lowest it’s been in over 20 years,” Giffin said.

The water sits at just 10 percent of average –the result of several years of drought.

“The Deschutes River basin is largely spring-fed — much like a large sponge. And it would take several years of above-average precipitation to fill that sponge back up,” Giffin said.

Some farmers NewsChannel 21 spoke with said they harvested less hay this summer. Others said they had average crops, but expect to fall short next year.

Griffin said less water for farmers is likely.

“It could mean shutoffs that we haven’t seen in a really long time,” Giffin said. “If there’s less water to give, I will curtail users who have junior water rights.”

NewsChannel 21 meteorologists Bob Shaw and Russel Bird are tracking the El Nino. You can watch their special report next week.