2026 Idaho Fall Water Summit

Building on the success of last year's Pacific Northwest Water Summit, this year's Idaho Fall Water Summit will focus on Idaho's water landscape. Across much of the state, Water Year 2026 has been one for the record books. Some parts of the state saw one of the wettest years on record, some the lowest snowpack, and all saw record-setting temperatures. The snow drought across this year raised urgent questions about what happened, what it means for the year ahead, and what it signals for our longer-term water future. These themes will permeate many sessions and talks from both the operations and research sides across the summit. 

The Idaho Fall Water Summit will continue to be in a two-day format that allows for deeper engagement, more meaningful networking, and expanded participation from students and early-career researchers. Led by the Idaho Department of Water Resources and Boise State University in collaboration with additional state and regional partners, this meeting builds on the previously held Idaho Fall Water Supply Meeting and will provide a recap of the water supply from the previous water year and provide climate and water supply outlook information for the coming water year. 

When

November 17-18, 2026
8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mountain Time

Where

Why Attend?

These meetings are critical for identifying vulnerabilities and opportunities to increase drought and climate resilience across economic sectors that are dependent on the region's water resources. The recap of water supply from the 2026 Water Year provides insight into how conditions impacted the build-up and melt-out of the year’s snowpack, timing of irrigation demand, and how much storage water remained by the end of the 2026 Water Year. The climate outlook information for the coming year reviews oceanic conditions and how anomalies in the Pacific could impact the coming year’s snowpack/water supply. In addition, presentations and a student poster session will share cutting-edge innovative water resources research. 

Meeting Registration

Meeting Agenda

Day 1: 

• Keynote: "Compacts and Calls: What the Colorado and the Snake Can Teach Each Other" - Dr. David Raff (Stantec)
• Water Year 2026 overviews from NOAA/NWS and Idaho Department of Water Resources 
• Eastern Idaho and forecast panel
• Student and early-career presentations
• Panel about drought impacts in the agricultural sector.
• Evening: Poster session with hors d'oeuvres (4:30-6:00 pm), followed by a social mixer (6:00-7:00 pm).

Day 2: 

• Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) Drought Working Group facilitated discussion
• Northern Idaho and long-term drought session
• Cross-sector drought impacts panel
• Drought and Public Health 101
• ESPA and Western Idaho update

The full agenda will be distributed the week of November 9. 

Virtual Meeting Information

The summit is designed for in-person attendance, and we encourage you to join us in the room. Zoom links will be distributed the week of November 9. 

Special Thanks

This event is sponsored and supported by the Idaho Department of Water Resources, Boise State University Division of Research and Economic Development, Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) at the University of Idaho, NOAA’s National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), NOAA’s National Weather Service (NWS) and NWS Northwest River Forecast Center, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service Snow Survey Program.