YAKIMA, Wash. — For the first time in state history, the Washington Department of Ecology is ordering a halt to surface water use in the Yakima Basin, citing critically low reservoir storage and streamflows after three straight years of drought.

Starting Oct. 6 and lasting through the end of the month, more than 1,500 water rights holders will be barred from diverting water. The restrictions may also extend to residential use, forcing some communities to limit lawn and garden watering.

“We have not experienced a drought like this in over 30 years, and it’s forcing us to take actions we’ve never done before,” said Ria Berns, manager of Ecology’s Water Resources program. “We know that restricting water diversions will impact communities across the Yakima Basin, but this is a necessary step

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