Wickiup Reservoir could reach highest level since 2018 | Climate Changed | bendbulletin.com - The Bulletin
Wickiup Reservoir could reach highest level since 2018 | Climate Changed | bendbulletin.com
Central Oregon remains in a state of drought but reservoir levels have managed to gain ground compared to levels a year ago thanks to a wet spring and conservative water allocations, giving some irrigators a sense of hope that the worst of the low-water years are behind them.
Wickiup Reservoir is currently around 18,000 acre-feet higher than it was this time a year ago. As of Friday, the reservoir was 22% full with five more months to collect water from the area’s springs. Prineville Reservoir, now 59% full and on track to fill up by early May, is also performing well.
Water flows through the dam at Wickiup Reservoir on Oct. 6, 2021. Ongoing drought left the reservoir empty before irrigation season concluded.
Ryan Brennecke/Bulletin file
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: hydropower
Hydropower — electricity generated by turbines capturing energy from moving water — was for many years the primary contributor of renewable energy to the U.S. electricity grid. Its growth was rapid into the 1970s, and since then has offered a stable supply of power, while a declining share of all generation. For many years, hydropower was seen as clean energy and an unalloyed good, but a greater understanding of the impact of dams on ecosystems and wildlife has led to the removal of some dams. As of 2019, hydropower trails wind as a renewable source of power generation.