Moses Lake level starts raising today

MOSES LAKE — Water will slowly be brought into Moses Lake today, about a week and a half earlier than previous years, as part of the annual start of the irrigation system.

The Moses Lake Irrigation & Rehabilitation District and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation are announcing the 1.5 foot increase to notify property owners, who may be working on docks.

The lake is currently down about 3.5 feet from winter lowering, explained John O’Callaghan, an Ephrata-based hydraulic engineer for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

The raise will be small and slow, and people in certain areas will notice it and others will not, he noted.

The bureau thought it could start the  work in advance to bring water to the Potholes Reservoir.

“We just happen to be in the position where it would be beneficial to do it now,” he says.

From the Potholes, water is delivered to farmers in the South Columbia Basin Irrigation District.

 — Staff report