First place YWS students hold certificates.

Southern Idaho Youth Water Summit Recognizes 2026 Student Leaders

Boise, Idaho — June 8, 2026— The University of Idaho’s Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) is proud to recognize the winners of the 2026 Youth Water Summit in southern Idaho. This inaugural event brought together more than 160 high school students to study local water issues through hands-on research, problem-solving, and public presentation.  Held May 5, 2026, at Expo Idaho, the event welcomed students from a wide range of school settings, backgrounds, and experience levels. For that reason, winners…

Sandpoint High School winning presentation.

North Idaho Youth Water Summit Recognizes 2026 Student Leaders

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — June 8, 2026— The University of Idaho Coeur d’Alene’s Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) is proud to recognize the North Idaho winners of the 2026 Youth Water Summit. This annual event empowers high school students to investigate and address real-world water issues in their communities through hands-on research, innovation, and public presentation. Held May 19, 2026, at Kootenai County Fairgrounds, the Summit brought together three hundred high school students from across North Idaho. The event…

IWRRI staff at the 2026 DEQ water quality conference.

Introducing New IWRRI Staff

Grace is a watershed scientist passionate about addressing water availability challenges through collaborative research to inform watershed management and decision-making. Grace earned a Ph.D. in Water Resources at the University of Idaho in December 2025, where her research focused on understanding how Idaho’s headwater systems are responding to climate change and disturbance, with particular emphasis on the intersection of groundwater, snowmelt, and wildfire. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Geography and GIS from Western Washington University and has extensive…

Kuna TCP students sample for macroinvertebrates along the Boise River at Barber Park.

Youth Water Summit Expands to Southern Idaho, Inspiring the Next Generation of Water Leaders

Boise State student uses high school project to inspire a career path, showing the lasting impact of hands-on science education Coeur d’Alene, Idaho — Presenting to North Idaho community members during the Youth Water Summit as a Lake City high school junior in the spring of 2021, shaped the course of Lucy Mendez’s future. Today, as an environmental science undergraduate at Boise State University, Lucy is drawing on what she learned about Coeur d’Alene Lake to explore real-world water solutions,…

Quagga mussels attached to an Idaho license plate after a single boating season's immersion in Lake Mead, NV.

OUR GEM: Hygiene, it’s not just for people…

Author: Ben Scofield, Coeur d’Alene Tribe Water Resource Specialist In all seriousness watercraft hygiene is an important subject in these days of increasing pressure upon our shared waterways. The Idaho State Department of Agriculture which operates watercraft inspections stations throughout the state recorded about 125,416 inspections in 2025. Each of these watercraft trips represent an opportunity for an aquatic invasive species (AIS) to jump from an infested waterbody to an un-infested one. With the detection of quagga mussel in the…

View of Pend Orielle River between Dover and Laclede.

OUR GEM: IWRRI funds strategic Idaho water research

New investments support collaborative science across Idaho’s public universities to improve water data, quality and long-term resource management statewide The Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) has prioritized and is backing several research projects involving the state’s three public research universities to address Idaho’s pressing water challenges. Established in 1964, IWRRI is one of 54 U.S. water research and technology centers, conducting and directing research to support the water resource needs of the state and entire Northwestern U.S. In fall…

View of Rathdrum Prairie from Rathdrum Mountain

OUR GEM: Understanding Aquifer Protection Through a Practitioner’s Lens

Author, Karla Freeman, Kootenai-Shoshone Soil and Water Conservation District Manager As communities across the Inland Northwest face increasing drought, population growth, and changing hydrologic conditions, discussions about water supply and water quality are becoming more frequent—and more technical. To help ground these discussions in local context, it is useful to hear from practitioners who work directly with land, water, and agricultural systems and who regularly engage with scientists, regulators, and landowners. One such practitioner is Laurin Scarcello. Scarcello has recently…

Green fields surrounded by brown hills in the Snake River Valley near Hargerman Idaho

IWRRI funds strategic Idaho water research projects

IWRRI funds strategic Idaho water research projects BOISE, Idaho — Jan. 08, 2026 — The Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI) has prioritized and is backing several research projects involving the state’s three public research universities to address Idaho’s pressing water challenges. Established in 1964, IWRRI is one of 54 U.S. water research and technology centers, conducting and directing research to support the water resource needs of the state and entire Northwestern U.S. In fall 2025, IWRRI allocated more than $580,000 for eight faculty-led research projects proposed by scientists…

Page Wastewater Treatment Plant SCC

OUR GEM: From Drain to River, How a Local Treatment Plant Is Improving Water Quality

By Pilar Deniston, Coeur d’Alene Lake ARPA Project Coordinator for Idaho DEQ When water from your home, whether from the toilet, sinks, or shower goes down the drain, it travels through a network of pipes to a wastewater treatment facility (unless you’re on a private septic system). There, it undergoes a series of treatment steps to become clean enough to return safely to the natural environment. The process begins with pretreatment, where large debris like sticks and plastic, along with…

OUR GEM: Taking Public Comments Regarding Wetland Protection Rule Changes

OUR GEM: Taking Public Comments Regarding Wetland Protection Rule Changes

by Sharon Bosley, Executive Director for the Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission The Clean Water Act (CWA) was created to protect our water resources by regulating discharge of pollutants into the waters of the United States. Its goal is to help ensure all waters are swimmable, fishable and drinkable. The purpose of defining the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) is to determine which waterways are protected under the CWA. The definition determines which waters require permits for activities that…