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18 CapitalPress.com October 28, 2016 Groups argue proposal would rescind water rights California plan calls for increased river fl ows to benefi t fi sh By TIM HEARDEN Capital Press SACRAMENTO — A state proposal to send more water down the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers to ben- efi t fi sh would harm farms and ranches and could lead to law- suits, farm groups argue. The State Water Resourc- es Control Board is taking comments through Dec. 16 on a plan to require up to 75 percent of what would be the rivers’ natural fl ows to reach the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. About 48 percent of the rivers’ outfl ow is now diverted for agriculture and cities, ac- cording to a scientifi c report by California’s top water panel. But the plan could lead to “signifi cant lawsuits” because it would essentially rescind water rights, said Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual. “It sets a terrible prece- dent,” Nelsen said. “It cancels out all pre-1914 water rights by fi at and it establishes new water rights, and I don’t think you can do that. ... Once you start taking water rights, then you’ve got a dictatorship. “I would argue that was never envisioned when that board was set up,” he said. Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau Federation, said in a statement that dedicating more river fl ows to fi sh amounts to “a one-two punch” aimed at rural residents and businesses. He said the Sacramento River plan, announced Oct. 19, would dedicate more Delta outfl ow to fi sh during the win- ter and spring — when the wa- ter could be fi lling reservoirs for both human and environ- mental uses later in the year. By limiting water that could be stored in reservoirs, the plan would reduce surface-water supplies for much of Califor- nia, Wenger said. “The state board’s river fl ow plans threaten to sentence rural California to perpetual drought, in the name of fi shery fl ows that may very well prove ineffective,” he said. Water board offi cials argue that greater quantities of Del- ta outfl ow are needed in the winter and spring to support species and habitat, noting that the number of juvenile salm- on migrating out of the Delta in spring increases with in- creased fl ow. Over the coming months, board members will study the potential impacts from letting as little as 35 percent to as much as 75 percent of the riv- ers’ unimpeded fl ows go to the Pacifi c Ocean. The board is also consid- ering setting limits on reverse fl ows in the Old and Middle rivers at the southern end of the Delta, which are caused by the state and federal proj- ect pumps and trap fi sh, offi - cials contend. The plan also The Delta has a host of envi- ronmental problems, includ- ing saltwater intrusion. Protections for fi sh have already led to drastic reduc- tions in pumping south of the Delta. Growers without senior water rights received no federal water in 2014 and 2015 because of the drought, and farms on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley re- ceived only 5 percent of their requested allocations this year. The water board will hold a public workshop on the proposal on Dec. 7, and there will be several additional op- portunities to comment as the proposal moves forward. For information on the plan and how to comment, visit www. waterboards.ca.gov. includes salinity objectives in the southern Delta. But Wenger countered that previous decisions to fl ush more water through the Del- ta have not resulted in greater fi sh populations. “If more water equaled more fi sh, we should be see- ing results, but we’re not,” he said. “We will continue to insist that water supplies ded- icated to fi sh be subject to the same metrics and effi ciency standards as those that farm- ers and homeowners must meet.” Scientists have spent years studying how to improve wa- ter quality in the Delta, which provides irrigation water for nearly 4 million acres of farm- land to the south and water for millions of urban residents. Agriculture’s voices must be heard on Columbia River, group warns Henry Etcheverry, an Eastern Idaho sheepherder who is president of the Western Range Association, would like to see changes in the H2-A labor program. Sheep industry criticizes H-2A rule changes By JOHN O’CONNELL Capital Press INKOM, Idaho — Federal reforms a year ago haven’t en- ticed more domestic workers to take sheep industry jobs, say leaders of an organization that hires foreign labor for Western sheep ranchers. Instead, offi cials of the Twin Falls, Idaho-based Western Range Association believe the November 2015 rule changes to the H-2A temporary agricul- tural worker visa program have become needlessly complicat- ed and delayed the approvals of badly needed workers. Henry Etcheverry, an East- ern Idaho Basque sheep ranch- er who started a three-year term as the association’s president in June, said his organization’s more than 200 sheep operations have collectively hired only two domestic workers since the changes were enacted. One worker was fi red for being intoxicated on the job. The other never showed up for work. Sheep ranchers are required to advertise job openings be- fore fi lling them with foreign H-2A workers, but Etcheverry fi nds the few locals who ex- press interest are typically out for a “camping trip.” “It’s just a pipe dream,” Etcheverry said. “This gov- ernment thinks there should be availability of (jobs) for domestic people, but domestic people don’t want to herd sheep — at least not for any period of time.” H-2A visas fi ll a critical la- bor need for U.S. agriculture. But Etcheverry said the appli- cation process is so complicat- ed that most operations rely on outside help, such as the asso- ciation. Etcheverry intends to visit with federal offi cials about the need for reforms during a No- vember sheep producers’ con- vention in Sun Valley, Idaho. H-2A workers are allowed to work at a U.S. sheep ranch for up to three years, with their status renewed annually. According to a government fact sheet, the program chang- es improve administrative effi - ciencies and “promote greater consistency in the review of H-2A applications, provide workers employed in the U.S. with improved health benefi ts and protections and provide greater clarity for employers with respect to compliance of program requirements.” Sheep ranchers, however, say the federal government couldn’t keep pace with H-2A applications under the revised rules and failed to process re- newals in time, forcing many operations to send workers home and then bear the ex- pense of re-processing them and bringing them back. Castleford, Idaho, rancher Mike Guerry had to return 30 workers to Peru and Chile from January through March. He noted the new rules roughly double minimum wag- es for sheep workers over the next three years, though sheep prices are down. Other changes require op- erators to give each employee a cell phone and prohibit com- pensating workers who would rather use their own phones, restrict workers from cutting wood and restrict lodging and dining facilities from within 500 yards of a corral, though watching sheep is a key role of a sheepherder. Guerry said operators may even be fi ned for failing to pub- licize benefi ts offered in excess of minimum requirements. Tremonton, Utah, rancher Lane Jensen, the association’s interim executive director, said another change specifi es herd- ers can’t deliver supplies to one another. Jensen said the association is lobbying to restore the status of members who were short of workers and kept them past deadlines when the government failed to renew their H-2A vi- sas. 97 mb Colu ia Chelan 12 Seattle 90 10 Coulee Dam 11 Spokane WASHINGTON Wenatchee 90 Olympia 6 5 r Snake R i ve Yakima Astoria 82 Richland Longview Pacific Ocean Vancouver Portland 101 5 5 Kennewick lumbia Riv e r Co The 1 Dalles 2 3 84 Umatilla 7 Pasco 4 8 IDAHO 9 Lewiston Walla Walla Pendleton . John O’Connell/Capital Press The Pacifi c Northwest Waterways Association is en- couraging farmers, ranchers, shippers and others involved in agriculture to share the impor- tance of the Columbia-Snake River system during a public comment period. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Recla- mation and Bonneville Power Administration are preparing a new environmental impact statement on the Columbia River system and the 14 fed- eral projects in the Columbia Basin. The public comment period ends Jan. 17. The EIS is in response to U.S. District Judge Michael Simon’s ruling in May. He found the federal government failed to use the best available science to consider salmon re- covery, including the possibil- ity of breaching one or more dams on the Lower Snake River. He told the agencies to create an updated plan for the river system within fi ve years. The agencies are determin- ing what to study as part of a scoping process, said Kristin Meira, executive director of the PNWA. “We’re looking forward to a very robust study of the entire river system,” she said. Many opinions exist on the future of the system, she said. “There’s also a lot of mis- information out there about barging, fi sh numbers and the Columbia and Snake river dams OREGON S na ke R Capital Press R i ver By MATTHEW WEAVER 84 Dams included in the recent court ruling N 20 miles 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Bonneville The Dalles John Day McNary Ice Harbor 6. Lower Monumental 7. Little Goose 8. Lower Granite 9. Dworshak 10. Albeni Falls 11. Grand Coulee 12. Chief Joseph 13. Libby (Mont.)* 14. Hungry Horse (Mont.)* *Not shown Sources: U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers Online For a list of the meetings got to http://www.crso.info/ true impacts of the dams on the river,” she said. Farmers who ship grain and others who rely on the river system should ask the federal agencies to consider all possible impacts to the re- gion’s economy as they con- sider changes, Meira said. “It’s really important that these agencies hear from all users so they understand how extensive the impacts of the river are,” she said. “It really Alan Kenaga/Capital Press is absolutely critical to our Northwest economy, so ev- erybody needs to lend their voices and say, ‘This river matters to me. Don’t forget to study my part of the river as you think about any changes in the future.’” Those who favor removal of the dams on the river sys- tem are also likely to partici- pate, Meira warned. “This is a great opportuni- ty to have the facts be docu- mented and make sure we’re all aware of what’s happening on the river as we think about how it should be operated,” she said. “For the benefi t of our fi sh, but also making sure we have the ability to move cargo, generate power and have irrigation here in the Northwest.” The agencies will have public meetings around the region and two web seminars. Meira encourages ag industry members to attend. “They’re not only a chance to come in and provide your voice, they’re also great in- formation sessions,” she said. “Maybe you know about one part of the river, but you don’t know about all the dif- ferent things happening on the river.” OSU offi cials mull future of ag facility By JOHN O’CONNELL Capital Press POWELL BUTTE, Ore. — Oregon State Universi- ty officials are mulling their options for the future of a re- search farm that’s been put to little use since 2010, due to the discovery of a previous- ly unknown species of potato cyst nematode. OSU’s 80-acre Central Or- egon Agricultural Research Center in Powell Butte once fi lled a crucial role in the Tri- state Potato Breeding Pro- gram — expanding experi- mental potato seed developed collaboratively by OSU, Uni- versity of Idaho and Wash- ington State University. Forage researchers also used the facility. But in recent years, the sole project in Powell Butte has been evaluating the po- tential for a newly discov- Courtesy of Inga Zasada Six-month-old potato plants grow in Powell Butte, Ore., exposed to varying rates of Globodera ellingtonae nematodes. The trials have shown the previously uncharacterized nematode doesn’t seem to hurt potato yields. ered PCN species, Globodera ellingtonae, to damage com- mercial potato crops. Though G. ellingtonae re- produces rapidly on spuds, the trials, which concluded in 2015, produced no evidence that the pest affects tuber quality or yield. Researchers also said they found no visual symptoms of nematode damage among the potato plants in infested fi elds. “We’ve never seen much decrease in yield unless we go to extreme high numbers,” said Russ Ingham, an OSU professor of botany and plant pathology. Inga Zasada, a research plant pathologist with USDA’s Agricultural Re- search Service in Corvallis, Ore., explained the nematode was found in two isolated lo- cations in Teton County, Ida- ho, and at the OSU facility in 2008. The discoveries were the result of extensive soil sampling done throughout U.S. potato country fol- lowing the 2006 discov- ery of a highly destructive pest, pale cyst nematode, in a small area of Eastern Idaho. The new species closely resembles nematode sam- ples found in South America, Zasada said. Idaho farm commodity reps join governor on trade mission to China By SEAN ELLIS Capital Press BOISE — Representatives of Idaho’s milk, potato, wheat and hay industries will join Gov. Butch Otter on a trade mission to China Oct. 28- Nov. 5. Several agribusinesses will also be represented during the visit to the world’s most populous country. Ida- ho’s last trade mission to China was in 2012. China is Idaho’s third-largest ex- port market for agricultural products, and the nation’s 300 million middle class citizens are driving demand for food products that Idaho’s farming industry specializes in, Otter told Capital Press in an email. “Those consumers are ... provid- ing a lot of opportunity for our Idaho exporters,” said Otter, a rancher and farmer. “That’s why our dairy indus- try, wheat growers, alfalfa farmers, animal feed producers and potato processors are joining me on this trade mission.” Dairy is Idaho’s No. 1 farm com- modity in terms of cash receipts and industry representatives will join the trip to China, including Idaho Milk Products, which is based in Jerome and produces milk protein concen- trate and cream and already sells product in China through a broker. “We’re just trying to expand that market and we’ll be trying to fi nd ad- ditional places where we (might) be able to sell,” said marketing manager Ron Hayes. The strong U.S. dollar makes it diffi cult to sell dairy products in- ternationally right now, he said, but “we look at (China) as a large poten- tial growth opportunity.” China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has the world’s second larg- est economy, which grew at an an- nual 6.7 percent rate in the second quarter, said Laura Johnson, who manages the Idaho State Department of Agriculture’s market development division. “It’s a huge market with tremen- dous potential,” she said. Representatives of the Idaho Po- tato Commission as well as Idaho potato processors will also be on the trade mission to China, which im- ports processed potato products but not fresh spuds. U.S. potato exports to China to- taled 127,821 metric tons from July 2015 to June 2016 and were valued at $148 million, according to data provided by Potatoes USA. That makes China the No. 4 export mar- ket for processed U.S. potatoes. When it comes to frozen french fries, which Idaho specializes in, China plays leapfrog with Mexico for the No. 2 spot. Seth Pemsler, vice president of the IPC’s retail and international di- visions, said he will focus on the pro- cessed side during the mission but the industry is also trying to position itself should China ever allow fresh potato imports.