BOISE, Idaho — Mark your calendar— the 2026 irrigation season for the Treasure Valley will begin on April 6.
Project Manager for the Boise Project Board of Control, Bob Carter, is warning water users to prepare for the worst but hope for the best.
Hear what one of Boise's key water managers has to say about the upcoming irrigation season
“This shortened season and less water available is very concerning to all of us and we take it serious,” said Carter of the current irrigation outlook.
Carter oversees Boise’s Diversion Dam and is responsible for filling and emptying the New York Canal.
Carter indicated that water will start running through the canal on Monday, April 6, and it will take a little over a week to fill the entire canal system. "The New York canal at Boise’s Diversion dam services 165,000 acres in the Treasure Valley, and it’s the biggest canal in this area. At certain times, it’s running more water than the Boise River," added Carter.
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A lifeline of the Treasure Valley whose construction required tremendous vision, the New York Canal was built in 1909 to help sustain the Treasure Valley's agricultural economy for hundreds of years to come.
Bill and Sharon Dodge recently retired in Boise, but have been here long enough to know about the importance of water to the Treasure Valley.
“Water is very important, and you see this year the lack of snowfall— we’re all anticipating what’s to come this summer," said Sharon Dodge. "With a lack of water to water our lawns, right?”
Carter says Idaho's weather can change on a dime, but for right now, he cautioned: “We don’t have that river to get us into June and July, we’ll be tapping into storage very early, in April, and that’s what’s going to make for a probably shortened season and less water. But the way things are looking right now, I would prepare for the worst and hope for the best."
And another reminder. Once the canals are full sometime in the middle of April, stay clear of them; they are not a playground and can be very dangerous.
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