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Legacies of lead & arsenic (part 2)
As Central Washington grows, former orchard lands with potential lead and arsenic contamination are being developed into housing. We’ve convened a working group to help us find solutions.
Protecting human and environmental health with Safer Products for WA
Many of the products used every day contain toxic chemicals that escape into homes and the environment when they're used and disposed.
Water supply update: Yakima Basin
In April, water managers announced a 100 percent water supply for Yakima irrigators this season. They optimistically predicted all water users were set.
Watching Washington's water supply
The western and southern part of the state is abnormally dry with some areas showing moderately drought-like conditions.
Watching the water supply
The balmy spring caused snowpack to melt at record rates. In early April, the state snowpack was slightly above normal. By late May, it was less than 50 percent of normal.
Olympic Peninsula classified as being in severe drought by federal drought monitor
In response to current conditions, some communities and water systems on the peninsula have already begun anticipating low water supply.
Water quality standards update
We are proposing a change in how we test for bacteria. These tests are a more precise indicator of contaminants that can affect human health and the environment.
Tackling nitrate contamination
Among our top priorities in Governor Jay Inslee’s 2020 supplemental budget is a request for $378,000 to expand monitoring for nitrates in Lower Yakima Valley private drinking water wells.
Legacies of lead & arsenic
Romans added lead to many products, ranging from makeup and contraception to cookware and in the early 1900s, lead arsenate was the most widely used pesticide in the U.S.
More than 100 years of water management builds sustainable supplies for Washington’s future
The state’s lengthy and colorful history of water law and water use regulations began long before the Department of Ecology was created in 1970.