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CapitalPress.com
July 10, 2015
Water
Water funding package passes Oregon Legislature
Umatilla, Morrow county project to benefit from bonds
EO Media Group
Oregon’s budget will in-
clude $50 million for water
development and efficiency
projects in a funding package
passed by the Legislature.
That’s good news for
northeast Oregon farmers
trying to pump more irriga-
tion water from the Columbia
River to expand the region’s
agricultural economy.
Prior to his resignation in
February, former Gov. John
Kitzhaber called for $51.6
million in a statewide water
development account to help
pay for new water supplies
and restoration. Gov. Kate
Brown also backed the re-
quest after her appointment.
What the Legislature ul-
timately approved was $20
million in lottery bonds and
$30 million in general obli-
gation bonds to accomplish
that goal.
Part of the money could
be used for pipes and infra-
structure to pump additional
Columbia River water onto
farms between Hermiston
Skagit County farmers get
some water, but still far short
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
Some Skagit County farm-
ers in two irrigation districts
covering roughly 15,000
acres are facing a summer
without water.
The districts are southwest
of Mount Vernon in northwest
Washington and are at the end
of the line before the Skagit
River empties into Puget
Sound.
The districts’ rights to
draw from the river have been
interrupted in the drought.
They have been able to ob-
tain 4.8 million gallons a day
from the city of Anacortes —
up to 1,381 acre-feet by Sept.
30.
But it’s only about one
third of the 12.5 million gal-
lons a day the districts need,
said Brandon Roozen, direc-
tor of the Western Washing-
ton Agricultural Association,
which represents both districts.
“We’re just starting to toast
right now,” he said Wednes-
day. “The reality is there will
be reduced crops, and losses.”
Farmers in the area grow
high-value crops, such as po-
tatoes and vegetable seeds.
There also are dairies and
nurseries in the districts.
Anacortes, a city in Skagit
County, has rights to draw 85
cubic feet per second from the
river, but anticipates needing
only 48 cubic feet per second
to meet peak summer de-
mands, according to city re-
cords.
Roozen said he sought to
obtain for the districts around-
the-clock access to 19.5 cubic
feet per second, the equivalent
of 12.5 million gallons a day.
The city agreed to lease
rights to 15 cubic feet per sec-
ond, but limited withdraws
from the tide-influenced river
to three hours before and after
high tide, or approximately 12
hours a day, to keep water lev-
els from dropping too low.
Roozen said he’s grateful
for what irrigators have ob-
tained, but maintains farm-
ers could draw more without
harming fish.
He said that most farmers
in the two districts aren’t re-
ceiving water before the irri-
gation systems have to be shut
down and only “a fraction” are
getting water.
The irrigation districts hope
to obtain another 5 cubic feet
per second from the Skagit
Public Utility District, bring-
ing the daily total to 6.3 mil-
lion gallons — roughly half
of what Roozen said farmers
need.
The Washington Depart-
ment of Ecology approved
the transfer of water rights
from Anacortes. Roozen said
he planned to contact Ecolo-
gy about the transfer of water
from the PUD, which has se-
nior water rights.
The Skagit Valley Herald
reported Wednesday that PUD
customers have questioned the
utility’s decision to transfer
water rights to farmers while
property owners face restric-
tions on groundwater use.
Roozen said the irrigation
districts have no other options
besides the PUD and Ana-
cortes to obtain water. He said
he planned to stay in touch
with city and PUD officials as
the summer progresses.
“I will keep them aware
of the current conditions,” he
said. “That’s about the only
thing I can do.”
LEGAL
PORT OF GRANDVIEW REQUEST for PROPOSALS
The Port of Grandview invites proposals from persons or businesses
interested in starting a business in the Ports Business Incubator
Building located at 683 Wallace Way, Grandview, WA. The purpose
of this RFP is to determine interest in locating and starting new
businesses in the building. The type of business proposals selected
will determine the interior construction required, rental rates and
occupancy dates.
All proposals shall include:
• The type of business (manufacturing, wholesale or retail)
• The area required (sq. footage)
• Volumes of water and sewer necessary.
• Natural gas and power requirements
• Product(s) to be manufactured or created
• Specific building requirements
• Anticipated number of employees
• Names and contact information of principals
• Personal or business references.
Persons interested in viewing the building or having questions
should contact: Jessica Hansen, Executive Director, Port of
Grandview, 509-882-9975 or jessica@portofgrandview.org. Proposals
in sealed envelopes marked “Incubator Proposal” should be
postmarked not later than Tuesday, July 28, 2015 and addressed to:
Port of Grandview, PO Box 392, Grandview, WA 98930 Legal-25-4-2/#4
and Boardman, growing
high-value crops such as po-
tatoes and onions.
The proposal, crafted by
the Northeast Oregon Water
Association, has taken months
of careful negotiations to
make sure they balance con-
servation interests. Now, state
dollars are officially in place
to move forward with the
project’s first phase.
“The Legislature has
worked so hard on our re-
gion’s behalf, and on behalf
of the state of Oregon to
provide a pathway for sen-
ed competitively to projects
throughout the state, Hansell
said NOWA appears to have a
substantial head start with the
foundation they’ve already
laid.
“From the beginning of
my time in the legislature,
this has been a top priori-
ty of mine,” Hansell said.
“Nothing comes close to the
prospects for what addition-
al, sustainable water devel-
opment means for our local
region’s economy.”
If successful, future
phases of the NOWA project
could build out infrastruc-
ture even further and tab other
work to fully mitigate impacts
to fish and wildlife habitat.
Rep. Greg Smith, R-Hep-
pner, said funding in the form
of general obligation bonds is
the mechanism that will help
get this and other water proj-
ects finally off the ground.
“A lot of folks have worked
hard on this,” Smith said. “It
will be great for the region.”
NOWA Chairman Craig
Reeder, of Hale Farms,
thanked Hansell and Dembrow
for their support and ability to
reach across the aisle.
“When we saw the letter
requesting the funding pack-
age, we thought we might
have a chance,” Reeder
said.
Obama administration official backs
increasing water in Yakima Basin
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
A federal official Tuesday
indicated that the Obama ad-
ministration supports helping
fund a plan to increase water
supplies in the Yakima Basin.
The Department of Interior’s
deputy assistant secretary for
water and science, Tom Iseman,
told the Senate Energy and Nat-
ural Resources Committee that
the plan would cost $900 mil-
lion to $1 billion over the next
decade.
Washington state, irrigation
districts and the federal gov-
ernment are expected to share
costs, though no financing plan
has been set.
“We’re looking at $350 mil-
lion to $375 million, potential-
ly, for the federal side,” Iseman
said. ”We face tremendous risks
of drought. We need to make
the investments now.”
The hearing on Capitol Hill
was the first on S. 1694, which
would authorize federal fund-
ing for water storage and fish
passage projects at the basin’s
reservoirs for the next 10 years.
The total plan — crafted by
irrigation districts, conserva-
tion groups, state and federal
officials and the Confederated
Tribes and Bands of the Yaka-
ma Nation — calls for spending
$4 billion over 30 years.
The committee heard from
only plan supporters, includ-
ing Kittitas Reclamation Dis-
trict manager Urban Eberhart
and state Agriculture Director
Derek Sandison. The panelists
presented a united front, say-
ing the plan was a remarkable
Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call via AP
Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., left, and chairman Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, take their seats for
a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing. The Obama administration Tuesday
announced its support for funding of the Yakima Basin Plan during a committee hearing. Cantwell last
week introduced a bill to provide federal funding.
collaboration between farmers,
environmentalists and the tribe
in a water-short region.
The absence of a dissenting
voice was noted, skeptically,
by the committee chairwoman,
Alaska Republican Lisa Mur-
kowski.
“Who opposes this?” she
asked. “It’s not possible we
could be sitting here and hav-
ing a discussion about fish and
water and not have some oppo-
sition out there.”
The question was largely left
unanswered at the hearing. The
Washington state chapter of the
Sierra Club later issued a state-
ment opposing the bill, which
was introduced by Sen. Maria
Cantwell, D-Wash. The Sierra
Club described some irrigation
projects in the plan as environ-
mentally destructive and mon-
ey-losers.
American Rivers’ Columbia
Basin director Michael Garrity,
who participated in developing
the plan, defended the irrigation
projects. He told Murkowski
that irrigators would pay their
fair share by financing water
projects. “The irrigators are
taking on the risk themselves,
rather than taxpayers,” he said.
Washington
lawmakers
have declared the state will pay
up to half the costs, but have
made no commitment beyond
$30 million over the next two
years. A state Treasurer’s Of-
fice report in December pre-
sented a list of financing op-
tions, including raising sales or
property taxes.
Sandison, who until last
month directed the state De-
partment of Ecology’s Office of
Columbia River, said the state
needs federal help to increase
water storage. He and Eber-
hart, also an Ellensburg farmer,
stressed the importance of agri-
culture to the region.
Phil Rigdon, superintendent
of the Yakima Nation’s Depart-
ment of Natural Resources,
said the plan will protect salm-
on and the tribe’s treaty rights.
The plan has been decades
in the making and has been aid-
ed by federal support. The bill
to extend federal participation
comes as the region’s junior wa-
ter right holders face drought-
forced water shortages.
Agency considers water prices to save in drought
By FENIT NIRAPPIL
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Ca-
lif. — California Gov.
Jerry Brown called for an
overhaul in water pricing
as part of his sweeping
drought order, and regu-
lators on Wednesday will
discuss how to best do
that in light of legal ques-
tions over rates designed
to encourage conserva-
tion.
The State Water Re-
sources Control Board
scheduled a workshop to
discuss what the state’s
role is in tinkering with
local water rates to maxi-
mize water savings during
the state’s historic four
year dry spell.
The board, acting on
Brown’s April executive
order, has already ordered
communities to slash water
use as much as 36 percent
to extend supplies if the
drought continues.
The
governor
also
called on state agencies to
direct private and public
water suppliers to develop
pricing mechanisms that
could also include penal-
ties and fees.
The state generally
stays out of local water
prices, which vary widely
across the state depending
on the source of water and
political pressure.
“We have to maintain
the solvency of water
agencies, send strong price
signals and maintain af-
fordability for low-income
households,” said Max
Gomberg, a senior scien-
tist with the water board.
Two-thirds of water
districts use some form
of tiered water pricing to
encourage conservation
by charging the heaviest
users more. That tactic
was thrown into question
earlier this year after a
court struck down puni-
tive rates in the Orange
County city of San Juan
Capistrano.
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“The Buttercreek Boys”
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28-2/#5
By GEORGE PLAVEN
sible, multi-beneficial water
development efforts to move
forward,” said Bob Levy, a
longtime Hermiston farmer
and secretary of NOWA.
Out of more than 300 re-
quests to the Capital Con-
struction Committee, only
95 were recommended for
funding, according to Sen.
Bill Hansell, R-Athena. With
bipartisan support from Sen.
Michael Dembrow, D-Port-
land, Hansell sent a letter
March 9 to the committee’s
co-chairs urging support for
water development and, in
particular, the NOWA pro-
posal.
While grants will be award-
541-561-2211 | 541-561-2327 | 541-303-3923
28-2/#6