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 without the necessary permits, using …
Draining Oregon: Lawmaker strips specific dollar amounts out of water fee bill, Oregonian,
Draining Oregon: Lawmaker strips specific dollar amounts out of water fee bill By Andrew Theen The Oregonian/OregonLive Apr 19, 2017 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.
Proposed Oregon mega-dairy wins key permit
Proposed Oregon mega-dairy wins key permit by Tracy Loew Statesman Journal March 31, 2017 A dairy with 30,000 animals proposed for Eastern Oregon has won state approval of its plan to manage the 187 million gallons of manure it will produce each year. Lost Valley Farm would be the second-largest confined animal feeding operation (CAFO) in the state, after neighboring …
Editorial: Short on aquifer information
Editorial: Short on aquifer information By the Editorial Board Baker City Herald September 21, 2016 When you irrigate fields and pastures from a reservoir or a stream, it’s easy to tell when you’re running short on water. You just have to look. But the situation is nothing like as simple when it comes to some of Oregon’s larger sources of …
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 enough alarm bells to wake …
Draining Oregon: State regulators must stop approving wells when water levels are unknown
Draining Oregon: State regulators must stop approving wells when water levels are unknown By The Oregonian Editorial Board The Oregonian September 10, 2016 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 …
Op-Ed: Eastern Oregon is running out of water
Op-Ed: Eastern Oregon is running out of water By Dorys C. Grover East Oregonian September 9, 2016 Water, one day, may be the drink of choice. We will be thirsty. One day we may find our high groundwater extraction has caused our aquifers to run out of water. There may come a day when our government will designate the amount …
Special Report: Draining Oregon
Special Report: Draining Oregon, Oregonian, August 26, 2016 In-depth analysis of state water management found farmers in a quarter of eastern Oregon, the driest part of the state, are allowed to pump more underground water each year than rains deposit. The water giveaway threatens economic chaos and hurts fish and wildlife.
Water fight brewing
Water fight brewing By Nick Budnick Bend Bulletin April 06, 2009 Diverting water from the Deschutes into Tumalo Reservoir would help meet future demand and make it ‘hugely cheaper’ to pump groundwater, say the plan’s backers. Opponents argue the proposal flies in the face of existing regulations. Challenging the widely held view that all the water in the Deschutes River …
Metolius resort may face water snag
Metolius resort may face water snag By Nick Budnick Bend Bulletin February 14, 2009 Talks are under way on Ponderosa’s well plan, but it may go to a judge SALEM — The Ponderosa Land and Cattle Co. wants to drill as many as 10 wells 1,000 feet into the earth to draw water for the company’s proposed 2,500-unit destination resort …
Water shortage back before lawmakers
Water shortage back before lawmakers Article on the proposed Umatilla basin aquifer storage plan. By Dean Brickey and Mitch Lies East Oregonian January 30, 2008 SALEM – Oregon lawmakers in special session beginning Monday will consider budgeting $750,000 for a feasibility study to determine if groundwater recharge can work in the Umatilla Basin. The aquifer recovery plan calls for …
Dropping rural Oregon groundwater levels causing concerns
Dropping rural Oregon groundwater levels causing concerns Bend Bulletin (AP) March 14, 2007 SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A homebuilder in rural Oregon can still sink a well and usually pump up to 15,000 gallons of water a day. But well levels are dropping, and in Salem the situation is getting another look as agriculture, fishery and environmental advocates ask lawmakers …
Water board gets earful on pumping
Water board gets earful on pumping By Dylan Darling Capital Press November 04, 2005 KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Farmers and federal officials can’t expect pumping well water to be a long-term solution for the surface water crunch in the Klamath Basin, Oregon water officials said at a workshop here last week. But state permits for pumping in the parched …
Officials Say Rules will Limit Groundwater Impacts
Officials Say Rules will Limit Groundwater Impacts By Dylan Darling Klamath Falls Herald & News October 28, 2004 Tapping into aquifers below the Klamath Basin is a Band-aid, but not a long-term solution, leading Oregon water officials said Thursday. But, they said, permits for pumping will flow. Dan Thorndike, chair of the Oregon Water Resources Commission, said the state …