The Oregon Water Resources Department has been considering making some important changes in various rules that have been in existence for nearly three decades. I’ll provide a little commentary below, but here are some links that can jump start your ability to weigh in. Here is the OWRD web page for the proposed rulemaking. If you select “Open House Materials and Surveys” you will see a number of informational materials and the opportunity to take a brief survey. WaterWatch has provided their views on the rulemaking and made short suggestions on survey responses which I largely agree with. Keep reading for a little more.

There are five categories in the proposed rulemaking. Waste of water, bulges in the system, exempt uses, violations and penalties, and rotation agreements.

Waste of water. OWRD proposes to take a small but welcome step towards reducing waste. WaterWatch’s suggestion that OWRD should require all water users to use the most efficient methods available and set efficiency standards for each basin has merit. I would take it a step further and suggest that the use it or lose it provision be reconsidered. Currently, water rights holders have to use their water at least every five years even if they are simply watering rocks and weeds. This is crazy.

Bulges in the system refers to irrigation ponds that do not store water permanently. If you have one you should take the survey.

Exempt well users, like me, are allowed to use 15,000 gallons of water a day and no metering or monitoring is required. This is far too much water for a single home. Further, there is currently no required metering or monitoring of water use. BTW, I can use another 3,000 gallons a day for limited commercial use, like if I wanted to sell the vegetables we grow. This is also crazy.

Violations and penalties. For me, this goes back to exempt wells. If there is no metering and monitoring of exempt well use then violations will not be known.

Rotation agreements. This refers to irrigation rotation agreements.