Media and Press

Klamath Advocates Condemn Destruction of the “Everglades of the West”

Klamath Advocates Condemn Bureau of Reclamation’s Willful Destruction of the “Everglades of the West” Conservationists Call on Gov. Kate Brown, Senators Wyden and Merkley to Stop Likely Catastrophic Waterfowl Die-Off, Hold Bureau Accountable for Longstanding Waste and Abuse Contacts: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, (541) 708-0731 Bob Sallinger, Audubon Society of Portland, (503) 380-9728 Steve Pedery,

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State officials let mega-dairy use loophole to tap endangered Oregon aquifer

State officials let mega-dairy use loophole to tap endangered Oregon aquifer By: Tracy Loew, Statesman Journal   March 22, 2018 A year after it opened, Oregon’s second-largest dairy has not secured rights to the nearly 1 million gallons of water per day it needs for its thousands of cows and to process milk. Instead, Lost Valley Farm near Boardman moved ahead

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Draining Oregon: Lawmaker strips specific dollar amounts out of water fee bill, Oregonian,

By Andrew Theen  |  April 19, 2017  |  The Oregonian A House committee gave its blessing this week to a bill that would charge an annual fee to tens of thousands of Oregon water rights holders — but not without a last second twist. Rep. Ken Helm, D-Beaverton, introduced an amendment to his proposed water user

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Draining Oregon: Bill to Fund $8.2 Million in Groundwater Studies Passes Key Hurdle

By Andrew Theen  |  April 14, 2017  |  The Oregonian The House Committee on Energy and the Environment on Wednesday endorsed House Bill 2707, which some lawmakers say would dramatically accelerate the state’s ability to analyze its groundwater supply. That legislation now heads to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, the state’s budget writing

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Audit: Oregon’s water watchdog agency is understaffed, overworked, has no plan for future

Audit: Oregon’s water watchdog agency is understaffed, overworked, has no plan for future by Andrew Theen The Oregonian/OregonLive December 15, 2016 Oregon’s Water Resources Department doesn’t have enough inspectors to enforce the state’s water laws, has no “clear understanding” of how much water is being used statewide and has no plan for the future, according

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EDITORIAL: Water, water everywhere

EDITORIAL: Water, water everywhere But Oregon’s aquifers are being drained By the Editorial Board Eugene Register-Guard September 14, 2016 A recent report by The (Portland) Oregonian about the massive amount of water being pumped from Oregon’s underground reservoirs, much of it for agricultural uses in Eastern Oregon, with little oversight or control, should set off

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Draining Oregon: State Regulators Must Stop Approving Wells When Water Levels Are Unknown

By the Oregonian Editorial Board  |  Sept. 10, 2016  |  The Oregonian: Draining Oregon State regulators approve permits for wells in Oregon even as they suspect there isn’t enough water in some areas to keep pace. A permit application might state it “cannot be determined” whether enough ground water existed for the well. Yet time

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Draining Oregon: State Pours Million Into Fifteenmile Creek but Fails to Help Steelhead for Lack of Water

By Kelly House  |  Aug. 26, 2016  |  The Oregonian: Draining Oregon Government agencies have spent more than $2.8 million in taxpayer money on this tiny Columbia River tributary since 2004. Workers have planted shade willows on the banks, lined its rocky bottom with logpile hiding places, and fenced off cattle from the sensitive habitat.

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Draining Oregon: Harney County Becomes the Latest Casualty of Lax State Oversight of Water and Irrigation

By Kelly House  |  Aug. 26, 2016  |  The Oregonian: Draining Oregon Rancher Harold Knieriem thought his days of worrying about water would end with retirement. No more angst when the skies dry up or a mild winter dollops too little snow on the mountains, leaving his cattle to dine on withered grass. Then the

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Draining Oregon: Water Giveaway Threatens Economic Chaos and Hurts Wildlife

By Kelly House and Mark Graves  |  July 26, 2016  |  The Oregonian: Draining Oregon Oregon is helping farmers drain the state’s underground reservoirs to grow cash crops in the desert, throwing sensitive ecosystems out of balance and fueling an agricultural boom that cannot be sustained, The Oregonian has found. Managers with the Oregon Water

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Oregon, feds to map cold water fish refuges in Columbia, Willamette rivers

Oregon, feds to map cold water fish refuges in Columbia, Willamette rivers By Kelly House The Oregonian/OregonLive November 3, 2015 Yakama fishermen Rex Zack and Doug Lamere prepare hoop nets on a fishing platform suspended over the Columbia River. Salmon have been central to the economy and culture of Pacific Northwest tribes for centuries. Photo

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Yurok Tribe pulls out of Klamath River agreement

Yurok Tribe pulls out of Klamath River agreement By Adam Spencer The Triplicate September 17, 2015 The Williamson River, tributary to Upper Klamath Lake, running through the Fremont-Winema National Forest. The historic agreement designed to end long-standing water wars between fish advocates and farmers throughout the 16,000-square-mile Klamath River Basin appears to be facing collapse.

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