AG/BUSINESS
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2022
WESTLAND IRRIGATION DISTRICT
Project aims to boost water supply
to improve water delivery and supply
reliability to district users, improve
conservation and support groundwa-
ter recharge. Westland is collaborating
with Farmers Conservation Alliance
and Umatilla County on the project to
bolster water deliveries in the district’s
north end while providing all users the
opportunity to add to their water sup-
plies.
Westland and the county want to
run a pipe and pressurize the northern
section of its A Canal, Engbretson said.
The pipe diameter is planned to be
42-inches and would cross Interstate 84
and tie into another pipe to replace the
open canal.
“The water would come from the
John Day Pool, below McNary Dam,
west of Umatilla,” Engbretson said.
“The pipeline would run along the
edge of the (Camp Umatilla) depot to a
chunk of ground next to the interstate
near the gravel pit. The pipeline will
spur off, cross the freeway and tie into
the ditch. The concrete-lined canal and
its three pump stations are to be de-
commissioned once the district can use
Columbia River water.”
BY JOHN TILLMAN
Hermiston Herald
Umatilla County has hired a consul-
tant on the $17 million project to take
more water from the Columbia River
to help local farmers while providing a
ready water source for economic and
environmental benefits.
Westland Irrigation District Man-
ager Curtis Engbretson said the Ord-
nance Regional Water Supply and
Aquifer Restoration Project will be “a
big benefit to the district and the com-
munity as a whole.”
Umatilla County and Westland Ir-
rigation District are co-sponsoring the
project, with funding and technical
support from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s Natural Resource Conser-
vation Service. Farmers Conservation
Alliance is assisting the NRCS with the
planning process.
“We would use the Columbia River
water in the summer, when there
would be no water in an open ditch,”
Engbretson explained. “We wouldn’t
have to rely on McKay Reservoir.”
The Umatilla County Board of
Commissioners at its Aug. 17 meeting
approved contracting with Michael
Bergstrom of AgriNorthwest, Kenne-
wick, as a consultant on the pipeline
project. John Shafer, board chair, said
it became apparent that hiring an ir-
rigation system consultant would be
beneficial.
“We don’t want to get too far over
our skis on this project,” he explained.
“We want somebody with the neces-
sary background to look out for the
best interest of the county.”
At least half the $17 million for the
project is coming from federal and state
grants, according to the Westland Irri-
gation District’s website. The balance
will be through long-term, low-interest
loans with repayment obligated to only
those patrons who choose to partici-
pate in the project.
PROJECT ADDRESSES WATER
INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS
Westland Irrigation District’s wa-
ter supplies come from early-season,
snowmelt water from the Umatilla
River and then later-season, stored wa-
ter from McKay Reservoir, delivered to
approximately 14,700 acres, according
to the district’s website. Water passes
through 30 miles of canals and pipe-
lines to more than 260 patrons, with a
Photos by John Tillman/Hermiston Herald
Even in a wet year, McKay Reservoir near Pendleton is low Aug. 25, 2022. It provides late season water for the Stanfield and West-
land irrigation districts. The $17 million Ordnance Regional Water Supply and Aquifer Restoration Project would bring Columbia
River water to the Westland Irrigation District, allowing the reservoir to retain supply for other uses.
“We don’t want to get too far
over our skis on this project.
We want somebody with the
necessary background to look
out for the best interest of the
county.”
— John Shafer, chair of the Umatilla County
Board of Commissioners
The upper reaches of McKay Reservoir near Pendleton show the effects of water loss
during the late summer irrigation season on Aug. 25, 2022.
majority living in the northern reach of
the system on smaller acreages.
When stored reservoir water is re-
leased for use, the conveyed distance
increases by an additional 30 miles
to reach those patrons in the district’s
north end, resulting in lowered delivery
efficiency and increased system losses.
Westland, the county and other
project partners proposed in late 2021
to modernize existing irrigation in-
frastructure and build new facilities
to increase late season water supply.
The project also would provide water
for other economic and environmen-
tal uses, and permit leaving more in
McKay Reservoir, south of Pendleton,
to support fisheries.
The supply and recharge project in-
cludes pressurized pipelines, pump
stations and aquifer recharge basins,
BACKGROUND AND
FURTHER STUDIES
Umatilla County acquired the right
from Northeast Oregon Water Asso-
ciation to pump out of the Columbia
River in July 2019. The county had
been in talks with the Westland Irri-
gation District for pumping capacity
since obtaining that right.
The district was interested in acquir-
ing an option to use a part of that ca-
pacity during the irrigation season. The
county board approved that option,
and agreements to acquire Westland’s
canal crossing, and to use Umatilla
River water through district facilities
for recharge testing on the depot.
Engbretson said he foresees an-
other year of work on the watershed
plan studies. The district could receive
funds at the end of next year. Con-
struction might begin in two to three
years.
“We’re still going through the water-
shed plan, making surveys of cultural,
environmental and economic impacts,”
he said.
And when the plan is complete, he
said, Westland can apply for Natu-
ral Resources Conservation Service
funding as well.
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