Friday, July 22, 2022
CapitalPress.com 13
Arrington: ‘We are who we are because of these giants’
Continued from Page 1
Taylor said the U.S. Geo-
logical Survey ranks Idaho
second behind California in
agricultural water withdraw-
als. Some 97% of all water
withdrawn in Idaho is for
agriculture.
The annual cash receipts
of Idaho’s irrigated agricul-
ture last year approached $7
billion — about 80% of the
total crop value.
The Boise River Basin
alone has about 1,500
miles of canals and later-
als, according to the Trea-
sure Valley Water Users
Association.
“Even as a kid,” Arrington
said, “I was amazed at what
our predecessors did to cre-
ate the world we live in.”
That includes building
canals and ditches “with a
fraction of the technology
we have today.”
Prior appropriation
Idaho uses the Prior
Appropriation
Doctrine,
also known as “first in time,
first in right,” to manage
water rights.
Meghan Carter, who
chairs the state Bar Associa-
tion’s water law section and
represents the state Depart-
ment of Water Resources,
said the doctrine does not
generally rank the use of
water.
“You can have discus-
sions about which uses are
more important, but when
it comes down to water law,
the ones that started first are
the ones that get the water
first,” she said.
“With our fast-grow-
ing population and how
that population is served —
we’re getting more people
in urban areas, and domestic
water with houses — all of
that poses its own interesting
problems,” Carter said.
She said state law rec-
ognizes rights for reason-
ably anticipated future
needs — municipal provid-
ers can develop water rights
under a planning horizon —
though the rights are admin-
istered using prior appro-
priation. The state manages
conjunctively, accounting
for groundwater and sur-
face water connections and
interactions.
Brad Carlson/Capital Press
Courtesy IWUA
Office and Program Manager Kathryn Hartman, Executive Director and General
Counsel Paul Arrington at Idaho Water Users Association office in Boise.
Idaho Water Users Association members at U.S. Capitol.
From left: Tony Willardson, Norm Semanko, Jerry Rig-
by, excutive director Paul Arrington, Will Hart and John
Simpson.
Norm
Semanko
Meghan
Carter
which makes him well-suited
to represent the Idaho Water
Users Association. And he
is very competent at it, mak-
ing sure he is up on all water
issues.”
Arrington
succeeded
Norm Semanko, the associ-
ation’s 2000-17 director who
returned to practicing water
law.
“I couldn’t have asked
for a better person to replace
me in that position,” the Boi-
se-based Semanko said.
Arrington “has worked very
hard to bring the association
to the next level, to familiar-
ize himself with the myriad of
issues, and more importantly
to become an expert and
trusted resource — not just
for the water user commu-
nity but for our elected offi-
cials, agency folks and fed-
eral and state government.”
House
Agricultural
Affairs Committee Chairman
Clark Kauffman, R-Filer,
said the Water Users Associ-
ation “is a great resource for
anybody in agriculture. But
for the Ag Committee, it was
especially useful.”
He also carried sev-
Trusted resource
Carter has worked with
Arrington throughout her
career.
“Every interaction with
him has been pleasant,” she
said. “He is easy to work
with and he does have the
ability to talk to anyone,
eral bills over the years
for the association in the
Resources and Conservation
Committee.
“Paul was always a good
source,” Kauffman said.
“Everybody
understands
water is important, and he
could explain it as well as
anyone, how it affected dif-
ferent people in different
ways. He is an example of
great expertise. He also is
glad to share the knowledge
and has been great to work
with.”
Brad Mattson, who man-
ages Aberdeen-Springfield
Canal Co., said associa-
tion members communicate
and cooperate effectively
— important this year as a
mostly dry winter was offset
by an unusually cold, wet
spring.
Mattson, who came to
eastern Idaho in December
from an ag-focused water
district in northern Califor-
nia, said Arrington is excel-
lent at “making sure we are
all looking toward the same
goal.”
Predecessors credited
Arrington credits the
association’s success to
past leaders and staff: direc-
tors Sherl Champan and
Semanko, and office and
program managers Karen
Edwards and Kathryn
Hartman.
“We are who we are
because of these giants,”
Arrington said.
Hartman in late 2019
succeeded Edwards, who
retired after more than 43
years.
Hartman said Arrington
is “thoughtful, intentional
and keeps his eye on the
larger picture.” He is “open
to collaboration and other
people’s ideas.”
Since Arrington’s May
1, 2017, arrival, the associ-
ation cut the number of big
annual events from three
to two, increased ground-
water district participa-
tion in association member-
ship and activities, moved
to virtual platforms and
added a leadership training
program.
He said Hartman was
instrumental in the virtual
shift that helped the asso-
ciation thrive during the
height of the COVID-19
pandemic, and in boosting
its social media presence
and activity.
“I
love
change,”
Arrington said. “There
is excitement in change.
Change can revitalize orga-
nizations and individuals. If
done right, change can be
the difference between suc-
cess and failure.”
Water priorities
Recent priorities include
water infrastructure fund-
ing. The Legislature spent
substantially on it in the
past four years, includ-
ing this year’s big amount
boosted by federal COVID-
19 stimulus and state sur-
plus funds.
“We are at a really once-
in-a-lifetime opportunity
to address infrastructure
needs,” Arrington said.
The 13-member first
class of the association’s
Headgate leadership acad-
emy started Nov. 2 and
graduated June 22. A goal
is to help “develop the next
generation of water leaders
in Idaho,” he said.
Education is another
focus as urbanization in
many areas poses new chal-
lenges. The association is
working with legislators
and other elected officials,
communities and others.
Arrington was recently
invited to speak to a group
of real estate agents for an
hour.
“It took three hours,” he
said. “They want to know.
They want to understand.”
Important attributes
When he started working
at the association, Arrington
took naturally to the job’s
required networking.
He is involved in a half-
dozen groups. A few are not
work-related. One group’s
members “have a passion to
find the best tacos,” he said.
“There’s
something
about just getting together
and thinking together,
hanging out and develop-
ing those relationships,”
Arrington said.
Another job require-
ment, patience, has been
more of an acquired skill.
“When you’re deal-
ing with water, everything
takes forever,” Arrington
said. The people in water
“are very thoughtful and
don’t want to rush into any
solution.”
He grew up south of Twin
Falls, where his father, Ste-
ven, owned a construction
company. His dad changed
careers and they moved to
town.
Arrington helped out in
a Boise-based corporation’s
legal department the sum-
mer before he graduated
from Gonzaga University’s
law school, and the follow-
ing summer. He worked on
natural resource and water
issues.
He practiced at a
water-focused law firm’s
Twin Falls office for nearly
a dozen years before taking
the Water Users Association
post.
Arrington reflected on
his dad’s hard work and his
own day of farm rock-pick-
ing as a pre-teen.
“My goal was to have
a job where I showered
before I went to work, not
afterward,” he said.
Study: Washington would be the hardest-hit state
Continued from Page 1
farmland loss is occurring,
and provide some policy
recommendations.”
Losing farmland
Don Jenkins/Capital Press File
Cattle graze in Washington.
Wolf: Court precedents
support controlling wildlife
damaging property
Continued from Page 1
shooting wolves in the
national forest. The suits
failed. State law and court
precedents support con-
trolling wildlife damag-
ing property.
The appeal to the 9th
Circuit claims violations
of the National Environ-
mental Policy Act and the
National Forest Manage-
ment Act.
The cattlemen’s asso-
ciation is not a party
to lawsuit, but filed a
brief July 14 asking the
9th Circuit to accept its
amicus brief.
The
environmental
groups oppose introduc-
ing the brief, arguing the
cattlemen have nothing
useful or additional to add.
The Forest Service
contends that since Con-
gress removed federal
protection from wolves in
Eastern Washington, the
state is primarily responsi-
ble for managing wolves.
“As a factual matter,
WDFW always ensures
grazers implement multi-
ple deterrence measures
to reduce wolf-livestock
conflict prior to lethal
removal,” according to
the Forest Service.
Between 2000 and 2016
alone, Candib said, roughly
11 million acres of farmland
has been lost or fragmented
by development.
Across the Northwest, as
many as 527,185 acres of
additional farmland may be
lost to urban and low-den-
sity residential develop-
ment by 2040 — particu-
larly around rapidly growing
metro areas around the Puget
Sound, Portland, Spokane
and Boise.
Washington would be
the hardest-hit state, los-
ing 238,614 acres of farm-
land under the worst-case
scenario. That is an area
roughly 4 1/2 times the size
of Seattle.
Oregon would lose up to
142,267 acres of farmland,
while Idaho would lose up to
146,304 acres.
“What we know is that
this conversion will dispro-
portionately impact our most
productive, versatile and
resilient land,” Candib said.
While the expansion of
highly developed urban
areas is a concern, Candib
also pointed to low-den-
sity residential housing as “a
big piece of the problem.”
Unlike highly developed
urban areas, low-density
residential housing exists
more on a spectrum, ranging
from large-lot subdivisions
to a few scattered homes
encroaching on farmland.
Once an area goes from
completely rural to low-den-
sity residential, Candib said
it is exponentially more
likely to become further
developed.
“As residential devel-
opment starts to populate
out into rural areas in an
unplanned or unchecked
way, it makes it harder for
farmers to farm,” she said.
“Over time, it can make it
difficult for farmers to see a
future for themselves in that
area. As folks give up ... that’s
where that land becomes par-
ticularly vulnerable.”
Three scenarios
The report outlines three
scenarios to envision how
urban and low-density res-
idential development may
impact farmland by 2040.
The first is “business as
usual,” which follows recent
development trends. “Run-
away sprawl” is the worst-
case scenario, which fore-
casts a 50% increase in
low-density building.
Finally, there is what
American Farmland Trust
calls “better built cities,”
which calls for policymak-
ers and land use planners
to target a 25% reduction
in highly developed urban
expansion and 50% reduc-
tion in low-density residen-
tial development.
Under the latter, Candib
said Washington, Oregon
and Idaho can save an esti-
mated 280,800 combined
acres of farmland, represent-
ing $206 million in farm out-
put and 7,382 jobs.
“We really need to invest
in urban density and limit the
expansion of urban growth
boundaries,” Candib said.
In its policy recommen-
dations, the American Farm-
land Trust calls on local, state
and federal governments to
create comprehensive plans
that prioritize farmland pro-
tection and “smart growth”
strategies condensing urban
development.
States should also invest
in programs to improve
training and land access for
new and beginning farmers,
Candib said.
“The best way to protect a
farm is to make sure it stays
farming,” she said.
Other risks
Urban sprawl isn’t the
only risk to losing farmland.
Rising sea levels due to
climate change threaten to
flood more than 450,000
acres of coastal farmland
across the country by 2040,
including 40,000 acres in
Washington and 4,000 acres
in Oregon, Candib said.
That total does not
reflect salinization of soil
and groundwater caused
by ocean waters, which the
report states would impact
many more acres.
To
combat
climate
change, both Oregon and
Washington have passed
legislation targeting 100%
“clean” electricity by 2040
and 2045, respectively. But
even that could have conse-
quences on farmland, specif-
ically from a proliferation of
proposed and permitted solar
farms in the region.
Candib pointed to a 2021
study by the Department of
Energy looking at the future
of U.S. solar production.
The analysis determined
that, by 2040, about 80,000
acres of land in Washington
may be converted to solar,
as well as 50,000 acres in
Oregon and 34,000 acres in
Idaho.
About 80% of those proj-
ects would be on agricultural
land, Candib said.
“We don’t want to paint
solar energy solely as a
threat,” she said. “However,
if we don’t plan otherwise ...
we will see some of our best
agricultural land converted
into solar.”
Though it may seem like
the Northwest has ample
farmland, Candib said food
security in the long-term
relies on ensuring those
remaining acres and produc-
ers are protected.
“The decisions our com-
munities make now with
respect to housing density
and urban growth will be
essential in ensuring we can
accommodate
additional
population increases, with-
out compromising more
farmland and open space,”
she said.