( Photo by Larry Reisnouer/The Spokesman-Review)

For those of you who saw the river in downtown Spokane during this spectacular spring, you know the difference between that sight and what happens here in summer. The river trickles to leaky faucet status and its fishy smells drift upward. Not very pleasing to the eye or nose.

Looks like water will flow more generously in the summer months now. This just in from Washington's Dept. of Ecology:

SPOKANE- The river actually will "run through it" under a new regimen that requires more water to flow down the Spokane River into Washington and through the falls downtown.
After a 30-day public review period, including a formal public hearing, the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) has submitted a
"401 Water Quality Certification" to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for Avista's four Washington dams...
Another goal of the 401 Certification is to achieve the flows that residents and visitors want to see. The document contains aesthetic flow requirements. Under the permit, downtown visitors and local residents will see more water flowing through the North Channel, which is currently dry for much of the summer. The increase would take place at 10 a.m. until 30 minutes after sunset.
In general, minimum flows during dry times, would increase by approximately 300 cubic feet per second. This amounts to about 2,250 gallons per second of increased flow.

For lots more information on the 401 certification click here.

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