Roza Water Users-

• 2026 Start Up-Diversions will begin Monday morning. Travel time over the 95 miles of the Main Canal takes about 4 days. Flushing out weeds and filling the canal and filling the pools behind the 29 check structures also takes a couple of days. Deliveries will begin late next week, with the upper end coming on first. Check the Roza website for updates.

• New Snow-This week’s storm will certainly help, and will build snow pack through the weekend, but it is not expected to make a major difference in our 2026 water supply. The warmer & rainy weather forecast for later in the month looks like it could take off some of the new snow pack. Reservoir content will increase a bit, which is always good. The next official water supply forecast will be issued by USBR on April 9^th and will be based on data as of midnight on March 31^st.

Overnight temps below freezing in the mountains at 3,000 feet elevation and below can help hold the snowpack. Click on this link for the daily Yakima Project report Hydromet Pacific Northwest Region | Bureau of Reclamation

• March Water-Water that is diverted in March is done so under the District’s senior right which runs from March 16^th to 31^st. March water does not count against your allocation which begins on April 1^st.

• Managing your 2026 Water Allotment. If you order water from April 1^st on and do not take it, the order still counts against your allocation for the season! Please monitor your allocation closely during the season and call the office at (509) 837-5141 if you have questions!  

• Leasing Senior Water in 2026-The Roza Board has examined leasing senior water rights in detail and not has not yet made a decision. The District’s drought fund is roughly $1.5M, which is down from $4.2M going into the 2023 season. Roza has received $3.4M in federal funds and just over $1.1M in partial state reimbursement funds for senior water leases and drought expenses since 2023.

• Leasing Roza Water Allotments –Rozawater users can lease water from other Roza water users. If you are interested in fallowing some or all of your property in order for another water user to lease your 2026 water allotment you can either deal directly with the other water user or you can call the Roza office and have you name added to the “for sale” list. There has been a steady flow of daily inquiries from growers looking to pick up water allotments in 2026, and any new allotments for lease are quickly picked up. Roza is not a party to the transactions beyond keeping the list.

• Yakima Training Center-In November of 2025, Washington State Department of Ecology Published East Selah PFAS Preliminary Monitoring Report.  The report identified an impacted area proximate to the Yakima Training Center that drains into the Roza Main Canal.  Roza Irrigation District notified the Army immediately of the conclusions in the Department of Ecology report and asked that the Army address the pathway.  The Army acted promptly by installing mitigation measures located downstream to the Ecology identified area and upstream of the canal. 

• Why don’t I receive a refund or a credit on my assessment when Roza’s water supply is reduced? The reason is that under Washington irrigation law the assessment pays for O&M of the water distribution system (canals, pipes, pumps etc.) and is based on acres assessed rather that the amount of water used. In a municipal system the user typically pays more if they use more water. Irrigation assessments are not based on how much water is used or how much water is available.

Roza’s expenses go up significantly in drought years, even though we have less water available to deliver. We have all of the normal O&M expenses to run the system during the drought years, plus more overtime to deal with the mid-season shutdowns, repairs for damage caused by shutdowns, and the cost of leasing water and running the pump backs, etc.

• Roza is Hiring- We are recruiting a Comptroller/Treasurer and for field staff positions. Check www.roza.org to see the openings and to obtain an application.

• Roza Map Link- This link will take you to Roza’s GIS mapping system if you need to research water allotments on other properties.  Roza Irrigation District Infrastructure 2023-2024 Water Year

• Data Centers– There have been several recent inquiries about data centers using water and their effect on water supply in the basin. There are no data centers in the Yakima basin.

• Why is there water in the Roza Main Canal in the Pomona/East Selah area in the off season? The water that you see in the canal after the irrigation season ends is diverted at Roza dam and is used to generate power 11 miles downstream at Roza Power Plant. During the irrigation season that power is used to supply the 18 pumping stations in the Roza system which supply water uphill of the Main Canal to 27,000 acres. All of the water returns to the Yakima River just downstream of Roza Power Plant. Roza pays about $1.1M for power annually.

• How much does Roza spend each year removing tires from the canals? Roza crews pulled 131 tires out of the canals this winter. They were all dumped in the past year. Roza spends about $25,000 per year removing tires (staff time/disposal fees/transport costs etc.), which does not include appliances, vehicles, trash, etc.

Please feel free to call or text me at the number below if you have any questions.

Scott Revell- District Manager, (509) 840-2721 cell