Wesley Hipke watches water rush into an artificial lake in the sagebrush desert of Jerome County, where it’ll sink beneath the surface. He’s the aquifer recharge manager for the Idaho Department of Water Resources.
Sending water underground is part of Idaho’s plan to replenish the aquifer after decades of decline.
Hipke said the average to above-average snow year for southern Idaho means the state has already exceeded its annual goal of recharging 250,000 acre-feet of water each year. It could reach 400,000-acre feet by the end of the season, around mid-May. For the past few years, the goal has not been met, thanks to a multi-year drought.
"That’s why it's really important, when we have these opportunities, to put as much into the ground as we can," Hipke said. "So this year is going to really help build that aquifer back up.”
There’s catch up to do, he said. Underground water levels in the ESPA hit all-time lows last year.
That's part of the reason why, despite filled reservoirs this spring, the Department of Water Resources issued a notice this month saying there could be irrigation shortages this summer.
That would mean farmers who draw from the aquifer and are not part of a state-approved mitigation plan could get their water shut off.
The state will make an updated irrigation order in July based on spring weather.
Find reporter Rachel Cohen on Twitter @racheld_cohen
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