March 24, 2017
CapitalPress.com
3
San Joaquin growers to get 65 percent of requested CVP water
By TIM HEARDEN
Capital Press
SACRAMENTO
—
Growers on the San Joaquin
Valley’s west side will get
65 percent of their requested
Central Valley Project surface
water supplies in 2017, feder-
al officials announced March
22.
Agricultural water users
north of the Sacramento-San
Joaquin River Delta will get
their full supplies, as will
Northern California urban
areas and customers of the
Contra Costa Water District,
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
officials said.
Municipal and industrial
customers south of the Delta
will get 90 percent of request-
ed deliveries. More water
could be provided south of the
Delta this year if conditions
allow, officials said.
Bob Curtis, the Almond
Board of California’s director
of agricultural affairs, said the
65 percent allocation is “wel-
come” after the Westside re-
ceived little or no federal sur-
face water during the drought.
But he hopes the allocation
will be increased, he said.
“That’s a significant por-
tion of our industry,” Curtis
said of Westside almond or-
chards. “On the Westside, in-
dividuals have been playing
catch-up.”
To make the most of water
stored in the San Luis Reser-
voir, Reclamation will limit
the amount of water carried
over to the 2018 contract year
to 150,000 acre-feet, or about
10 percent of this year’s allo-
cation, a bureau news release
explained.
The announcement follows
the bureau’s decision in late
February to give full alloca-
tions for many growers served
by the Central Valley Project,
including the settlement and
exchange contractors on the
Sacramento and San Joaquin
rivers, respectively, and the
Friant division in the eastern
San Joaquin Valley.
Westside growers weren’t
expecting a full allocation,
which Fresno County Farm
Bureau chief executive of-
ficer Ryan Jacobsen called
“unacceptable” considering
the winter’s abundance of rain
and snow.
As of March 21, Califor-
nia’s snowpack water content
was 158 percent of normal
statewide and the San Luis
Reservoir west of Los Banos,
Calif., was at 99 percent of
capacity, according to the
state Department of Water
Resources.
“It really shows you how
broken the system is and how
frustrating it is for those folks
who are not able to receive the
water they’re contracted to re-
ceive,” Jacobsen said. “When
you look at a year like this
year, how can anything short
of 100 percent be possible?
But that’s realistically what
we’re looking at.”
Hundreds of thousands
of acres on the Westside
have been fallowed in recent
years as surface water sup-
plies have steadily decreased
because of protections for
imperiled fish, growers’ ad-
vocates say. The Westside
only received 5 percent last
summer despite late-season
storms that provided more
water elsewhere.
Bureau officials were
weighing several factors in
determining the remaining al-
locations, including reservoir
levels and hydrologic condi-
tions. They were also waiting
for the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration
to complete its fisheries’ tem-
perature management plan for
Shasta Lake, the centerpiece
of the CVP.
The bureau typically an-
nounces its initial allocations
in mid-February, although it
waited until April 1 last year
to take into account anticipat-
ed storms in March while giv-
ing informal reports to water
districts.
The federal allocations
come as the State Water Proj-
ect has so far promised 60 per-
cent of requested deliveries to
its 29 contracting agencies.
State officials said an increase
is being discussed, but they
couldn’t say when or by how
much the allocation could be
raised.
Willamette Valley vineyards building
facilities to make white, sparkling wines
By ERIC MORTENSON
Capital Press
Courtesy Owyhee Irrigation District
This aerial picture of the Owyhee River basin was taken March 13. The basin received snowpack lev-
els that were well above normal this year and the Owyhee Reservoir is expected to receive so much
runoff water from the basin this year that water managers have turned their attention to preventing
major flooding.
Owyhee Reservoir water managers
focus on preventing major flooding
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
ONTARIO, Ore. — The
Owyhee River basin is ex-
pected to provide the Owyhee
Reservoir so much water this
year that water supply manag-
ers are now focusing much of
their attention on flood con-
trol efforts.
The reservoir, which pro-
vides water for 1,800 farms
and 118,000 acres in Eastern
Oregon and part of south-
western Idaho, is 90 percent
full and would completely fill
within nine days at the current
pace.
However, Owyhee Irriga-
tion District board members
have opted to increase the al-
ready high rate of release be-
low the dam to keep a 50,000
acre-foot buffer in the reser-
voir for the next several weeks
in case warm temperatures or
a significant rain event result
in a rush of water toward the
reservoir.
If that happened, reservoir
outflows would have to be in-
creased dramatically, which
could result in major flood-
ing of farm fields along the
Owyhee River.
“The basin is just saturat-
ed; there’s water everywhere
out there,” OID Manager Jay
Chamberlin said March 21
during the district’s annual
meeting. “We’re running out
of room (in the reservoir).
We’re going to have to pick
up the releases below the
dam ... and slow the rate of
fill.”
For now, there is minor
flooding occurring at the bot-
tom ends of some farm fields
but water managers want to
ensure major flooding doesn’t
occur, said Malheur County
farmer and OID board mem-
ber Bruce Corn.
“Barring a major rain
event, I don’t think we’ll have
any major flooding on the
Owyhee this year,” he said.
But in order to ensure that
doesn’t happen, “we’re trying
to save about 50,000 acre-feet
of storage to be able to absorb
any short-term, rapid increase
in flows.”
Even with the increased re-
leases, filling the reservoir to
its 715,000 acre-foot storage
Courtesy Owyhee Irrigation District
Water is released for flood control purposes from the Owyhee
Reservoir dam March 13. The Owyhee Reservoir is expected to
receive so much runoff water from the basin this year that water
managers have turned their attention to preventing major flooding.
capacity, which hasn’t hap-
pened since 2011, won’t be a
problem this year.
The U.S. Bureau of Rec-
lamation forecasts that hun-
dreds of thousands of acre-
feet of water is still headed
toward the reservoir, which
can hold a two-year supply of
water.
That’s great news for local
farmers, who had their normal
4-acre-foot allotment of wa-
ter significantly reduced from
2012-2015 due to drought
conditions.
“That means we will have
two adequate water years,”
Corn said. “That sits well for
next year already and it takes
one big worry out of farm-
ing.”
As expected, the OID
board set this year’s allotment
at 4-acre-feet March 21 and it
also decided to allow the sale
of excess water, which hasn’t
occurred on this system since
2011.
In a typical year when ex-
cess water is available, about
30,000 acre-feet is purchased
by irrigators, depending on
weather conditions and crop
rotations.
Due to warmer than nor-
mal temperatures, snowmelt
and runoff in the basin is oc-
curring earlier than normal,
“but we have lots of it,” said
Brian Sauer, water operations
manager for the Bureau of
Reclamation’s middle Snake
Grass
Expertise.
River field office.
“Everything looks pretty
good in most of East Oregon,”
he said. In fact, he added,
“The whole northwest is look-
ing pretty good this spring.”
LEGAL
PURSUANT TO ORS CHAPTER 98
Notice is hereby given that the
following vehicle will be sold,
for cash to the highest bidder,
on 3/27/2017. The sale will be
held at 10:00 am by
PARKING ENFORCEMENT
SERVICES
1768 13TH ST. SE SALEM, OR
2006 Mirage Trailer
VIN = 5M3BE142561018024
Amount due on lien $2924.00
Reputed owner(s)
JOHN C. PINARD
legal-11-2-1/#4
At least two Willamette
Valley vineyards are build-
ing new wineries to produce
white and sparkling wines,
perhaps indicating an expand-
ing market in a region best
known for red Pinot noir.
Domaine
Serene,
of
Dundee Hills, has begun con-
struction of an 8,000-square-
foot winery dedicated to
producing Chardonnay, spar-
kling wine and a white ver-
sion of Pinot noir, the wine
that made the Willamette
Valley a player in the interna-
tional wine scene.
The facility is expected to
be ready in time for the 2018
harvest. Domaine Serene also
has planted 25 acres of Char-
donnay grapes over the past
three years.
“We’re doubling down
on it,” company spokesman
Matthew Thompson said.
“We feel very good about the
high quality of Oregon Char-
donnay.”
Reviewers appear to
agree. Wine Spectator maga-
zine rated Domaine Serene’s
2014 Evenstad Reserve Char-
donnay second among the 10
best wines of 2016, and the
top-rated white.
Instead of producing
white wine elsewhere, Do-
maine Serene’s new winery
will have dedicated facilities
for Chardonnay and spar-
kling wines, plus cold stor-
age capability. Construction
began March 1.
Meanwhile, Willamette
Courtesy of Domaine Serene
In a photo taken earlier this
winter, an excavator clears
space for a new, 8,000-square-
foot winery at Domaine Serene
vineyard in Dayton, Ore. The
new winery will focus on white
wine production.
Valley Vineyards, based near
Salem, added seven acres of
Chardonnay grapes and is
working with architects on a
planned sparkling wine facil-
ity in the Dundee region as
well.
Company Winery Director
Christine Collier said consum-
er demand for lighter, crisp
whites is driving the changes.
Rosé wines also are increas-
ingly popular.
“We’re definitely seeing a
trend in Oregon wine to ex-
pand Chardonnay programs,”
she said. “The demand is high
right now.”
Michelle Kaufmann, newly
appointed communications di-
rector at Stoller Family Estate,
said Chardonnay is “absolute-
ly on the rise” in Oregon.
“Many people believe that
it will overtake Pinot gris as
Oregon’s number one white
wine, though I’m not sure
there’s enough data yet to
make that claim,” Kaufmann
said by email.
She said the nuances of
producing exceptional white
and sparkling wines are dif-
ferent than making red wines,
so wineries’ decision to have
facilities dedicated to that pro-
duction makes sense.
But Pinot noir isn’t fading
by any means.
The Oregon Wine Board’s
2015 report showed Pinot
noir accounted for 62 percent
of the 24,742 acres planted to
wine grapes in Oregon. A pair
of whites were a distant sec-
ond and third: Pinot gris with
3,403 acres, and Chardonnay
with 1,181 acres.
“I don’t think it’s too far of
a stretch at all that Oregon is
entering the next chapter in
our wine history,” Kaufmann
said.
Kaufmann previously was
communications
director
for the Oregon Wine Board.
She and vineyard manager
Jason Tosch are recent hires
at Stoller, in Dayton. Also at
the company, Ben Howe was
promoted to winemaker and
Austin Raz to digital brand
manager.
LEGAL
LEGAL
CHERRY AVENUE STORAGE
2680 Cherry Ave. NE
Salem, OR 97301
(503) 399-7454
Sat., April 1st • 10 A.M.
• Unit 29 - Luis Aguilar
• Unit 41 - Kimberly Rivas
• Unit 64 - Kristen McDonnell
• Unit 142 -
Angelique Goldschmidt
• Unit 196 -
Debra or Josh Ireland
Cherry Avenue Storage
reserves the right to refuse
any and all bids
NOTICE OF OREGON MINT COMMISSION BUDGET HEARING
legal-11-2-1/#4
TO: ALL OREGON MINT GROWERS
Notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held
pursuant to ORS 576.416 (5), on Thursday, April 13, 2017 at
10:00 a.m., at the White Buffalo Bistro, 4040 Westcliff Drive,
Hood River, Oregon upon a proposed budget for operation of
the Mint Commission during the fiscal year July 1, 2017 through
June 30, 2018. At this hearing any producer of Oregon Mint oil
has a right to be heard with respect to the proposed budget, a
copy of which is available for public inspection, under
reasonable circumstances, in the office of each County Extension
Agent in Oregon. For further information, contact the Oregon
Mint Commission business office, P.O. Box 3366, Salem, Oregon
97302, telephone 503-364-2944. The meeting location is
accessible to persons with disabilities. Please make any requests
for an interpreter for the hearing impaired or for other
accommodation for persons with disabilities at least 48 hours
before the meeting by contacting the Commission office at 503-
364-2944.
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