Climate Impacts Group

Dear friends, supporters and colleagues: I loved seeing so many of you at our 30th anniversary film screening event! We were honored to celebrate with over 250 supporters, collaborators, and community members. I particularly enjoyed the thoughtful panel discussion at the end, when former governor Jay Inslee asked far-reaching questions about resilience, storytelling, climate policy, and hope. And…

Low winter snowpack has led to increased fire potential across eastern Washington in June and July. Washington State Climatologist Guillaume Mauger is quoted. 

After a warm winter left Washington’s mountains largely bare this spring, the Washington Department of Ecology issued a statewide emergency drought declaration as projected water supplies are likely to fall far short of the state’s summer demand. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quoted. 

The entire state of Washington was declared in a drought emergency Wednesday as state officials nervously eyed an unusually low snowpack and a likely hotter and drier than usual spring and summer ahead. At the heart of the declaration is the Yakima River basin, which is in a drought emergency for a fourth year in a row. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quoted. 

This year the snowpack sits at about half its normal levels and it’s melting early. This has been the state’s third-warmest winter on record, meaning that moisture is increasingly falling as rain rather than snow. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is mentioned. 

The sixth annual Pacific Northwest (PNW) Water Year Impacts Assessment provides a detailed evaluation of climate conditions and related impacts across Idaho, Oregon, and Washington during the 2025 water year (October 1, 2024–September 30, 2025). 

The Northwest has had plenty of precipitation, but too much of it fell as rain instead of snow for a plentiful snowpack to develop. October through December 2025 was the warmest such three-month period on record in Washington. The Washington State Climate Office is mentioned. 

Road damage and rockslides caused by heavy rain in the passes along Highway 20 will take time to remove and repair, even though the snowpack in the North Cascades is about 75% of normal. The Washington State Climate Office is mentioned. 

A new, NW CASC-supported study led by researchers at the University of Montana and partners in the U.S. Forest Service, Conservation Science Partners, and Vibrant Planet, uses climate-analog modeling to explore the future of vegetation change in the western U.S. This study found that about one third of the western U.S. is highly vulnerable to ecological transformation by the middle of the 21st ce…

In January 2026, the Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC) and the UW Center for Disaster Resilient Communities (CDRC) released a report 18 months in the making regarding nature-based strategies to address flooding in Duwamish River communities. The project, entitled “Living With Water,” used community-based research strategies to identify nature-based solutions to flooding that align with co…

Washington is a state with a wide variety of climate zones and localized ‘microclimates.’ This engaging piece notes the most notable microclimates across WA and what factors create these unique climate features in our state. Emeritus State Climatologist Nick Bond and Engagement Climatologist Jacob Genuise are featured.   

January brought warmer than normal temperatures and near record-breaking dry spells. Both factors contributed to worsening snowpack across the state. The Washington State Climate Office is mentioned.

This winter has been the warmest on record, which may lead to anomalous bloom times this Spring. Washington State Climate Office is mentioned. 

From December’s flooding to January’s warm temperatures and less-than-average precipitation, this year’s winter has been particularly volatile. These observations offer a snapshot of northwest winters to come. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quoted.

The December 2025 flooding was triggered by intense atmospheric rivers. Warm conditions meant much of this precipitation fell as rain rather than snow, overwhelming river basins across Western Washington. The Washington State Climate Office is mentioned. 

The National Weather Service predicts a La Nina will exit soon, uncharacteristically leaving behind a puny snowpack in Oregon and Washington. Below-average temperatures triggered the La Nina, normally linked to colder and wetter winters in the Pacific Northwest. This winter, however, has been more typical of a strong El Nino, triggered by warm seas. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quo…

The snowpack at Harts Pass is healthy, but that’s the exception for Washington’s normally snowy mountains. Despite record-breaking rainstorms in December, this winter has been warmer and drier than usual, leaving most of the state with little to no snow. The overall state snowpack as of early February was lower than in 95% of all years in the historical record. Engagement Climatologist Jacob Genu…

October through January marked the warmest first four months of the water year ever recorded in Washington, averaging more than 3 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quoted.  

Oregon’s snowpack has fallen to its lowest level on record for this time of year, part of a broader snow drought gripping the Pacific Northwest and raising concerns about water supplies, wildfire risk and impacts to farms and fisheries. Deputy State Climatologist Karin Bumbaco is quoted.