As readers of this blog know, I have been a frequent and outspoken critic of the Oregon Water Resources Department.  For decades, they have done little to protect the public’s water.  You also know they have been working on a new rule that takes a step in the right direction.  It is now time for public comment on that rule and I strongly encourage you to express your opinion.  This is a complex topic, but I will do my best to give a very brief overview, suggest what you can do, and then provide some commentary.  If you care about water in Central Oregon, and the entire state, please take the time to continue reading.

In 1955 an act was created that ordered OWRD to only approve new groundwater drilling permits where there were “reasonably stable” groundwater levels.  Unfortunately, “reasonably stable” was never defined and few steps were taken to measure or otherwise obtain the data that would inform water managers.  Accordingly, it has been standard practice for OWRD to routinely approve new drilling permits.

It is well understood that drought and over pumping have created serious problems in many parts of the state, including Central Oregon.  Now, nearly 70 years after they were ordered to consider stable groundwater levels, OWRD is attempting to follow their mandate.  Of course, this is not universally popular.  Agriculture, industry, cities, and counties, including in Central Oregon, have mounted campaigns in opposition.

You can learn more about this issue by looking at the groundwater section of this blog and visiting OWRD’s Groundwater Allocation Rulemaking site.  OWRD is currently holding public hearings in various parts of the state and will have a final virtual meeting on May 21.  They held a meeting in Bend on April 4.  There was a worthwhile 30 minute overview which provides concise background.  The Q&A at the end was informative as well.  This was followed by an hour long public comment session where various people spoke in opposition as well as in support of the new rules.  This was also illuminating. 

Written comments on the proposed rules will be accepted until May 31 at 5 pm.  They can be sent to Laura Hartt, Oregon Water Resources Department, 725 Summer Street NE, Suite A, Salem, OR 97301 or emailed to WRD_DL_rule-coordinator@water.oregon.gov.

My view is that the rules are a welcome step in the right direction but are not nearly enough to address our water issues.  OWRD acknowledges they are not suggesting truly comprehensive new rules.  The proposed groundwater rules will NOT address the causes of current declining groundwater levels, they will simply slow the rate of future decline.  Permits for new wells will be denied in areas without stable groundwater levels, but the causes of existing decline will not be addressed.  Current overallocation of the resource will not be addressed.  Declining aquifer recharge due to global warming will not be addressed.  We will still be rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic, even if the ship sinks more slowly.

OWRD needs to implement the new rule and quickly keep going.  A truly stable aquifer needs less pumping and more recharging.  More aggressive water conservation, water transfers or reallocation between irrigation districts, artificial aquifer recharge, water re-use, charging for water, etc., all need to be considered.  These tactics, and others, are being used in other states, why not here?  The new rule also needs to be applied to exempt wells.  I remain dumbfounded that domestic wells, like mine, do not require a permit or any metering or monitoring.  I could run water all day long, every day and no one would know.

The primary argument against the proposed rule in Central Oregon comes from cities who state they need more water to keep growing.  (See here also.) I would argue that they need to conserve a lot more.  Most water in cities is used for landscaping.  We live in the high desert.  Think about it.

Now I’m really going to get on a soapbox!  At the comment meeting in Bend, local cities and the Deschutes River Conservancy argued that Central Oregon is special, and we should be able to create our own rules for water through collaboration and something called Placed Based Planning.   I disagree.  I am an active, engaged member of the Deschutes Basin Water Collaborative, a place based planning process that is an outgrowth of the Basin Study Work Group where I was also a participant.  I honestly hope these efforts will yield results but they have been going on for years.  Excellent data has been gathered but progress on creating collaborative solutions has been painfully slow.

To the extent that progress has been made on surface water issues it is due to the rules established by OWRD or the Deschutes Basin Habitat Conservation Plan.  OWRD’s Deschutes Basin Groundwater Mitigation Program forced new, non-exempt, groundwater users to “mitigate” the impact of their withdrawals on surface flows.  The Mitigation Program is not designed to, and has not stopped, our local aquifer from experiencing decline.

The Mitigation Program did put a small amount of water back into the Middle Deschutes around 20 years ago, but consistent, guaranteed increases have not occurred.  Don’t be misled when people say that the Mitigation Program has increased flows in the Middle Deschutes by 8x or some similar nonsense.  When you start with a very small number and multiply it by 8, 10, whatever, it’s still a small number.  In the past few weeks the Middle Deschutes has been flowing as low as 65cfs, which is an ecological disaster.

Further, progress made in restoring flows in the Upper Deschutes and the requirement to increase flows in the future is mandated by the Habitat Conservation Plan.  Local irrigators must do this to continue to divert irrigation water.  Understanding how to do this, and help implementing it, has been collaborative, but the decision to require it was not.

Placed based planning is a worthwhile endeavor, but it is something that should be done within the structure of agency, legislative, and federal rules.  Real progress requires a carrot and a stick.  We should be using our planning efforts to understand how we can work within the rules, refine, and implement them.

I commend you if you’ve made it this far.  Now please take the time to submit written comments.