Alongside heavy, sustained rainfall bolstering flows in the Snoqualmie River, The City of North Bend announced Monday that it has exited its annual Water Conservation Ordinance (WCO).

The WCO goes into effect in Stage 1 each August to help protect water levels in the Snoqualmie River. It sets water usage restrictions for city residents and those served by city water.

Monday’s announcement comes after the city entered Stage 2 of the WCO on Oct. 20. Stage 2 set tighter restrictions as the region experienced its driest conditions in nearly a century. During the dry spell, flows in the Snoqualmie River were low for this time of year and remained at or below single-day record lows.

Western Washington received heavy amounts of rainfall over the weekend and The Snoqualmie River reached a Phase 4 flood alert, according to the King County Flood Control District.

This is the third-year for the WCO, which stems from legislation passed in 2020. North Bend has entered Stage 2 at least one other time, in October 2020, according to previous reporting by the Valley Record.

The stages of the WCO are based on water levels in the Chester Morse Lake Masonry Pool, which feeds Hobo Springs. The city uses Hobo Springs as its primary mitigation source to supplement water levels in the Snoqualmie River.

The WCO will go into effect again on Aug. 15, 2023.