BRIEFLY

BRI E FLY

OLDTOWN - U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) officials at Albeni Falls Dam announce Lake Pend Oreille elevation targets for the upcoming 2026 fall drawdown. A gradual fall drawdown is scheduled to begin Monday, Sept. 21, with the following elevation targets (as measured at Hope, Idaho): Hold summer pool elevation, 2,062-2,062.5 feet, through Sept. 20.

Remain above 2,061 until Sept. 28.

Target 2,060-2,061 feet by Sept. 30.

Target 2,051-2,051.5 feet no later than Nov. 15.

Hold 2,051-2,051.5 feet elevation band until Kokanee spawning is complete, generally late December.

Fall drawdown serves multiple purposes by accommodating fall/winter Kokanee spawning and creating space for flexible winter power operations. Fall drawdown is accomplished by releasing water through the powerhouse, not the spillway.

USACE operates Albeni Falls Dam as a multiple-purpose project, providing flood risk management, recreation, power generation, fish and wildlife conservation and navigation.

To receive email notifications for Albeni Falls Dam outflow changes and near-term lake elevation projections, email uppercolumbiawm@ usace. army.mil and request to be added.

‘Garden Hacks: Work Smarter, Not Harder’ class

NEWPORT — The WSU Pend Oreille County Master Gardeners will host a very special class on Garden Hacks: Work Smarter, Not Harder, on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 1 p.m. at the WSU Pend Oreille County Extension Office, located at 227A South Garden Ave. in Newport. This class will be taught by longtime Inland Northwest Garden writer and consultant Pat Munts, whose five decades of hands-on experience have shaped her practical, efficient approach to gardening.

From her home garden in Spokane where she has weathered fire, ice, snow, deer, bugs, heat, cold, and plenty of weeds, Munts has developed strategies to make gardening easier at any age.

Munts writes a weekly gardening column for the Spokesman-Review and is co-author of the Northwest Gardeners Handbook, the first book to fully address gardening conditions on both sides of the Cascades. To register for this class, contact Beverly Sarles, M-F, 8-4:30 p.m., at 509-447-2401 or email anytime at beverly. [email protected].