U.S. Army Corps of Engineers water managers will hold two virtual information sessions on Tuesday, May 19, to discuss severe drought conditions and the summer forecast for the Willamette Valley’s 13 reservoirs.
According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2026 has been the sixth-driest in terms of water year precipitation to-date since 1980 in the Willamette Valley. Low rainfall and snowpack have created widespread drought conditions across the region, impacting the efforts to refill the reservoirs and keep them full.
Overall, the Willamette Valley system of dams and reservoirs were 68% full as of May 11.
Foster was at 7% and Green Peter was 64% full.
Year-to-date precipitation is 85% of normal, with snow-water equivalent (the amount of water in snow) 4% of normal, the Corps reported.
“It’s always a delicate dance to balance all the congressional purposes of these dams and reservoirs,” said Salina Hart, chief of reservoir regulation and water quality with USACE’s Portland District. “Because of these historic lows, it’s even more challenging to achieve a balance between purposes like recreation, hydropower, irrigation, wildlife habitat, and downstream river flows for water quality and fish survival.”
Despite the low water levels, officials note that without the 13 dams capturing and storing the limited rain and snowmelt received so far, the entire Willamette River Basin would currently be in a much worse condition.
“We know how deeply the communities of the Willamette Valley value this river system and rely on these reservoirs, so we are doing everything we can to carefully manage every drop of water we have,” Hart said. “Our priority is to support the people, the local economy, and the environment by balancing these critical, competing needs through the difficult months ahead.”
The public information session will include the forecast for summer reservoir levels and time for questions from the public.
The first session will be from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, followed by a second from 6 to 7 p.m. The meetings can be accessed on the Corps’ web page at www.nwp.usace.army.mil/Locations/Willamette-Valley.
The meeting ID is 993 838 686 442 and the passcode is f775Qk9o.
Participants can also dial in by phone at 1-601-262-2433. The conference ID is 124 893 446#.
Reservoir Conditions
USACE’s “teacup diagrams” provide real-time water elevations for USACE-managed reservoirs. The Portland District encourages the public to check the “teacup diagrams” before heading out to recreate to determine boat ramp availability at https://www.nwd-wc.usace.army.mil/nwp/teacup/willamette.