Irrigation operations begin for the Columbia Basin Project

GRAND COULEE, Wash. — The Bureau of Reclamation began operating the Potholes Reservoir/O’Sullivan Dam outlet works Feb. 28 and Banks Lake/Dry Falls Dam outlet works on Mar. 3, 2022, in preparation for the 2022 irrigation season.

To prepare Banks Lake for the March 3 operation startup, Reclamation began pumping water from the John W. Keys III Pump-Generating Plant into the north end of Banks Lake on Feb. 27, 2022. Water is pumped from Lake Roosevelt by the John Keys Pumping Plant to maintain Banks Lake elevations for Columbia Basin Project irrigation activities.

Recreationalists on Banks Lake and Potholes Reservoir should be aware that operational activities could destabilize existing ice without obvious warning signs to indicate conditions have changed. Reclamation cautions ice anglers on Banks Lake and Potholes Reservoir that operational fill and spill activities may cause existing ice conditions to deteriorate rapidly and in a manner that may not be readily apparent to the casual observer.