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In this fourth consecutive drought year in the Yakima River Basin, surface water right holders are again facing periods where they must reduce or stop water use. As restrictions can change day to day, if you rely on a surface water right, check this page often for limits on water use. We also have answers to your frequently asked questions.
Check restrictions online
Click the map and enter your water right number, parcel, or address. If you received a postcard from us, your water right and priority date are listed in the top right corner.
River flow information hotline
You can get restriction updates by phone using our riverflow hotline. You must know the location of your diversion and your priority date.
Call toll free: 1-866-277-4092 and listen carefully to the options.
Why did I get a postcard?
You can find your water right number on the postcard you received in the mail.
If you received a postcard in the mail - you have been identified as having surface water rights in the Yakima Basin and may be subject to water restrictions if water supplies drop low enough in the weeks to months ahead. Your postcard contains your water right number, priority date, and instructions on how to receive the most up-to-date information. If you have multiple surface water rights, you should have received multiple postcards. Please save every postcard you receive for future reference.
If you believe you have mistakenly received a postcard or letter, or should have received one but didn’t, please let us know using this contact form. This may have happened if you have recently sold or purchased land or don’t use water on your property, for example.
In back-to-back droughts, like we are experiencing now, all surface water right users are at risk of curtailment.
Water rights in the Yakima Basin
In the Yakima Basin, there are three types of water rights:
Senior water rights (priority date older than May 10, 1905)
Proratable water rights (priority date of May 10, 1905)
Junior water rights (priority date newer than May 10, 1905)
Water restrictions occur almost every year in the Yakima Basin, even in non-drought years. This is especially true for junior water right holders or senior water right holders in some tributaries. Timing of restrictions vary from year to year and can occur earlier and affect more water users with each successive drought. The best way to get updates on restrictions is to check this website frequently.
Washington water law
Washington water law declares “first in time, first in right,” meaning that the oldest water right holder in the basin has the legal right to withdraw all their allocated water before the next person in line, who holds a right “junior” to their senior right.
The Yakima Basin underwent a 40-year legal process, known as an adjudication, to determine who has surface water rights and their order of seniority. It gives us certainty to regulate water fairly and consistently based on priority date.
In October 2025, the Yakima Basin experienced historically low reservoir storage and streamflows after a third consecutive year of drought. We have not experienced a drought like this in over 30 years.
Water from the basin’s reservoirs ran out on Oct. 6, 2025. Without that stored water, precipitation and flows from the Yakima River would not have been enough for even the oldest water right in the basin.
These unprecedented conditions required us to restrict all surface water use in the basin to protect the most senior water rights. The restrictions were in place until the end of October, though we assessed conditions each day to determine if some or all water right holders could resume water use.
April 1, 2026 – It is too early to know what water supply conditions will look like in October and how that impacts senior water rights. To be safe, we are preparing for a possible restriction of senior water rights in October 2026.
Senior water rights may be restricted if reservoir storage is low, and flows in the Yakima River are low. If there are October water restrictions, letters will be sent out to the individuals affected.
Water restrictions occur each year in the Yakima Basin, especially for junior water rights (priority dates after May 10, 1905).
Timing of restrictions vary from year to year and can occur earlier and affect more water users with each successive drought.
In drought years, senior water rights (priority dates before May 10, 1905) may be restricted after September 30. Also, localized restrictions may occur for junior and senior water right holders that divert from tributaries, when flows drop and hot, dry conditions persist. Letters will be sent to these water right holders and the restrictions will be shown on the map.
The best way to get updates on upcoming restrictions is to check this website frequently.
Water use in the Yakima Basin is restricted during times of water shortage, which occurs each year. In times of drought, water rights that are typically not restricted can be impacted as well.
When there is abundant rain and snow, all water right holders can use as much water as is permitted by their right. During drought, when surface water is scarce, only the most senior water right holders can use water. The oldest water right in the basin has the legal right to use all their allocated water before the next person in line can access whatever remains.
This means that when water supplies are low, we must manage water by priority date so there is enough for senior water rights. Ecology is legally authorized to place these restrictions under court order, which is unique to the Yakima Basin and doesn’t happen elsewhere in Washington.
The Yakima Basin underwent a 40-year legal process to determine who has surface water rights and their order of seniority. This process is known as adjudication. It gives us certainty to regulate water fairly and consistently based on priority date.
In Washington, a drought emergency is declared when water supply conditions are, or are expected to, fall below 75 percent of average, and there is potential for undue hardships due to low water supply. This is done when certain conditions are met (RCW 43.83B). Washington declared drought on April 8, 2026. A drought declaration does not give direct authority to curtail water use. It does give the opportunity for drought response.
For the Yakima Basin, an emergency drought declaration has been issued every year since 2023.
The Yakimawww.usbr.gov/projects/index.php?id=400 Project is the US Bureau of Reclamation’s water storage and delivery system. During drought, when water supplies are low, Reclamation manages the available water supply through prorationing and storage control.
Prorationing is the method of allocating water when the seasonal supply cannot fully meet demand. More specifically, prorationing is implemented when the US Bureau of Reclamation estimates that the total water supply available (TWSA) from April 1 – September 30 is not adequate to meet irrigation entitlements, and instream flow requirements. This often occurs when the USBR goes on storage control but can occur earlier as determined by the Reclamation’s Field Office Manager.
Storage Control is the status of Reclamation’s reservoir operations in which water must be released to meet demand (irrigation entitlements and instream flow requirements). The following conditions trigger the start of the storage control period:
Minimum required flows at the Yakima River near Parker, WA are sustained by reservoir releases
The combined outflows of Reclamation’s five reservoirs are greater than inflows
La cuenca del Yakima está enfrentando su cuarto año consecutivo de sequía. Como consecuencia de esto, han habido momentos en que muchos o todos los titulares de derechos de agua superficial se han visto obligados a reducir o cesar su uso del agua. Si depende de un derecho de agua superficial, consulte esta página regularmente para ver las restricciones de uso del agua hoy y en el futuro, ya que estas pueden cambiar a diario.
Yakima Basin Curtailment Map (solo en inglés). Haga clic en el mapa y escriba su número de derecho de agua, parcela o dirección. Si recibió una postal de nosotros, su derecho de agua y la fecha de prioridad aparecen en la esquina superior derecha.
Las restricciones incluidas en esta página solo se aplican a los derechos de agua superficial regulados por Ecología. Si obtiene agua de una ciudad, un distrito de riego u otro proveedor, su disponibilidad de agua podría ser diferente. Es posible que usted también reciba avisos sobre las restricciones de su proveedor de agua y no de Ecología.
Información de contacto
509-575-2597
Deje un mensaje y le responderemos en un plazo de dos días laborales.
We offer free language services about our programs and services for people whose primary language is not English. We can provide written information in your preferred language and interpreters in person or over the telephone.
