Living With the Methow River

Monthly Activities and Learning Opportunities

April 2018

From the Calendar: "Local farmers and ranchers use river water to irrigate during the dry summer months. Special screens are installed at irrigation diversion points to prevent fish from entering the canals. The water is then conveyed by a esries of piped or open canals to the fields."

During the summer months, water is precious in the Methow. The hot sun means that crops require more water. It also means that fish require higher flows to stay cool. To make matters worse, flows begin to drop in the summer, leaving the river heavily taxed by those who depend on it.

Salmon recovery projects can help fish by helping farmers. Helping local farmers and ranchers replace leaky irrigation canals with new pipes reduces waste, ensuring that the water taken from the river reaches the fields. Replacing inefficient irrigation sprinkler systems with modern pivots helps to further reduce demand on the river, leaving more water for fish without harming crops or livelihoods.

Other projects attempt to increase the amount of water available. The Methow Beaver Project relocates nuiscance beavers to remote areas high in the watershed, where the beavers' dams hold back spring runoff. The beaver ponds drain slowly over the summer, returning water to the river when it's needed most.

The 2018 calendar features more great block print art by local kids with help from the Methow Arts Alliance and layout by Tara Gregg. Pick up your 2018 calendar at the Riverbank in Twisp, the Twisp Community Center, the Twisp Library, or the Winthrop Library, or click here to view the calendar as a PDF.

 

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This year’s MRC calendar connects to ADVENTURES, ACTIVITIES AND INFORMATION tailored to each month. If you haven't gotten your calendar yet, you can download an electronic version here.

Come back each month and find interactive activities, print outs, and suggested learning opportunities in our community.