Before Christmas, when a cold blast of Arctic air was anticipated, BPA officials increased the amount of water flowing through dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers to generate more power. That move cuts down on available water to aid salmon runs, so BPA officials are wary about the lack of rain and snowpack in the Rockies and Canada, which supply the rivers. The situation is not just an environmental one but also an economic issue. That's one reason Mosey and Badley say they are pleased that Gov. Gary Locke and Oregon Gov. John Kizthaber plan to issue a strong plea today for continued conservation efforts. It all has to be paid for by someone.
People use energy, and the companies buying it have to pay for it.
Ultimately, the customer pays. The less energy we use, the more water stays in the reservoirs. Kelly Redmond, a climatologist with the Western Regional Climate Center, said Thursday that snowpacks range from about 50 percent to slightly more than 80 percent of average in the critical areas. While he would not be specific about the weather ahead, he said some signs exist that La Nina, which generally brings colder and wetter weather to the Northwest, has not made the full exit from the area that many had thought. To the extent that's a factor, we might expect wetter than usual weather, but we haven't seen that, so something else is going on.