WaterWatch opposes HB 2406 – “Son of OASIS”

Please oppose the permanent withdrawal of up to 132,000 acre-feet annually from the Columbia River in violation of existing legal protections of Columbia River salmon.    

Like its failed predecessors in the 2007 session (SB 483/SB 610/HB 3525), HB 2406 would circumvent existing protections for imperiled Columbia River salmon and steelhead. Federal fisheries managers have set minimum needed river flows (“target flows”) that federal agencies, together with state agencies and some irrigation districts are working to meet. Strategies include augmenting river flows in the dry season to help ensure enough water is in the river. Idaho and Montana annually release approximately 1,450,000 acre-feet of stored water to help meet downstream target flows. Oregon has established a number of programs to help protect our Columbia and Snake River fish and the rivers upon which they depend. HB 2406 would undermine or eliminate these protections for these fish.

WaterWatch of Oregon opposes HB 2406. 

1.  HB 2406 would circumvent state rules that protect imperiled salmon and steelhead.  To address recognized dry season flow problems in the river and help recover endangered fish, Oregon adopted rules that limit new water withdrawals to, among other things, ensure no further diminishment of critical seasonal flows in the Columbia system (OAR 690-33, “Sensitive Stock” rules). The Sensitive Stock rules set seasonal limits (April 15 though September 30) on new water appropriations. These limits coincide in time with the Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s flow augmentation schedule in the Columbia and Snake Rivers. HB 2406 will circumvent these salmon protection rules and allow 132,000 acre feet of water withdrawals (that would not meet the reasonable exemptions of the Sensitive Stock rules) during critical summer months when federal and state agencies in the region are working together to meet target flows needed for fish.

2. HB 2406 undermines the collaborative efforts of a coalition of Umatilla Basin water users to appropriate available winter water from the Columbia River for the Umatilla Basin Aquifer Recovery Project. Oregon has determined that water is currently available from the Columbia River during most winter months, when Oregon’s fishery protection rules do not limit withdrawals. In 2008 the Legislature adopted SB 1069, which, in part, directed $750,000 to study the feasibility of the Umatilla Basin Aquifer Recovery Project. The Governor’s recommended 2009-2011 Budget includes the use of Lottery Revenue proceeds to fund this project. A broad coalition of Umatilla water users is on the path to capture winter water in a way that will not undermine fish protections. HB 2406 backers want a “free pass” to Columbia River water during the summer months when withdrawals will harm imperiled fish. HB 2406 undermines the existing collaborative process.

3. HB 2406 will not result in the replenishment of groundwater: HB 2406 boosters state that 1/3 of 132,000acre feet (roughly 44,000 acre feet) would be used to “replenish” groundwater in critical groundwater areas. However, nothing in the bill directs this result. The bill simply allows new Columbia River surface water allocations to groundwater users who have been regulated due to declining groundwater tables in the area. This will not replenish troubled aquifers in the area. Importantly, current law allows aquifer recharge projects that could replenish critical groundwater in the area without any statutory change.

4. Water allocations under HB 2406 are permanent, not temporary. The bill boosters are dubbing this bill the “interim resolution” for groundwater restoration in the Umatilla Basin, and even claim the rights issued under this bill would be “temporary” rights. To the contrary, the bill will result in permanent water rights for 132,000 acre feet from the Columbia that are not affected by any future groundwater recharge projects or statutory sunsets.

5. HB 2406 ignores the significant economic interests and benefits of healthy rivers and undermines recovery efforts for imperiled Columbia River fish. HB 2406 fails to protect the longstanding and significant economic contribution that commercial and recreational fishing provides to the Oregon economy. Recreational fishing is one of Oregon’s fastest growing industries in the 21st century. Columbia River salmon and steelhead are critical to both of these industries. But the native fish of the Columbia River, and also the industries that depend on them, have suffered severe declines in recent decades. In the Northwest, sport fishing contributes 3.5 billion dollars annually to the economies of Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Personal communication Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association (June 10, 2005). Commercial fishing adds another billion dollars. Id. HB 2406 also ignores the economic and cultural value of healthy fisheries to Native American Tribes. Oregon cannot afford to allow HB 2406 to further undermine these interests.

Contacts:

John DeVoe, WaterWatch of Oregon (503)295-4039 x1 john (at) waterwatch (dot) org

David Moskowitz, Confluence Consulting (971)235-8953 dmosk (at) confluenceconsultingnw (dot) com