The holiday season has arrived, and with Thanksgiving in the rearview mirror we wanted to share a reminder that Giving Tuesday is coming up this Tuesday, Nov. 28th. When making your choices for giving this Tuesday, remember that Oregon continues to face powerful moneyed and political interests that will dam and drain our rivers, whittle away our waterways, denude our …
Court of Appeals Denies Proposed Drift Creek Dam But Water District Intends to Appeal
By Bill Poehler | Nov. 17, 2023 | Salem Statesman Journal The Oregon Water Resources Commission and the Court of Appeals have prohibited the dam, saying it might harm cutthroat trout that spawn in the creek. Oregon’s Court of Appeals this month upheld a previous ruling prohibiting construction of a new dam south of Silverton on Drift Creek, saying the …
Oregon Water Officials Say Permitting Must Change to Keep Tens of Thousands of Wells from Going Dry
By Alex Baumhardt | Nov. 13, 2023 | Oregon Capital Chronicle The cost of digging deeper wells could climb into the hundreds of millions if the state does not revamp groundwater permitting, officials told lawmakers. The Oregon Water Resources Department must update its 68-year-old rules for permitting new wells or double down on regulating existing ones, department officials said. If …
Oregon Water Partnership Praises Proposal to Modernize State Groundwater Allocation Rules
Nov. 6, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For information please contact: Tommy Hough, WaterWatch of Oregon, tommy@waterwatch.org Oregon Water Partnership Praises Science-Based Proposal to Modernize State’s Groundwater Allocation Rules As groundwater depletion becomes an even greater crisis throughout Oregon and the U.S., the Oregon Water Resources Department has developed science-based rules to put Oregon on a path of sustainably managing groundwater. …
Disastrous Dam Repair on North Umpqua Sparks Massive Fish Kill, Pollution Spills, State Senate Inquiry, and $27.6 Million Fine
By Jim McCarthy | Oct. 30, 2023 | The Osprey At least 550,000 juvenile Pacific lamprey were killed this summer due to the botched repair of Winchester Dam on Oregon’s North Umpqua River. On October 6th, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) filed a $27.6 million claim for recovery of damages in the Douglas County Circuit Court against …
Southern Oregon Dam Operators Now Face Water Pollution Fines on Top of Millions for Fish Kills
By Alex Baumhardt | Oct. 27, 2023 | Oregon Capital Chronicle The operators of Winchester Dam in Oregon face more than $134,000 in fines for water violations on top of $27.6 million for killing lamprey. The operators of a southern Oregon dam and the company that repaired it face additional fines for violating state permits and polluting the North Umpqua …
State Signals It’s Likely to Deny Redmond’s Application for Future Groundwater
By Joe Siess and Tim Trainor | Oct. 16, 2023 | Redmond Spokesman The state, which has proposed new rules to Oregon’s groundwater permitting process, has signaled the city of Redmond’s application for a future groundwater permit would likely be denied. The Oregon Water Resources Department is reviewing the city’s application and taking a second look at the statewide rule …
Oregon Demands $28 Million for Massive Fish Kill and Water Violations at Winchester Dam
By Alanna Mayham | Oct. 6, 2023 | Courthouse News The multimillion-dollar claim by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife on Friday arrives after weeks of advocacy over dam repairs that killed at least 550,000 Pacific lamprey. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife issued a $27.6 million claim for recovery damages against the Winchester Water Control District and …
Oregon Seeks $27 Million for Dam Repair it Says Resulted in Mass Death of Pacific Lamprey Fish
By Claire Rush | Oct. 6, 2023 | Associated Press Oregon officials are seeking more than $27 million in damages over dam repairs they say killed more than half a million Pacific lamprey fish in what they’ve described as one of the largest damages claims for illegal killing of wildlife in state history. In a claim filed in Douglas County …
Judge Finds Feds Violated Law by Favoring Irrigators in the Klamath Basin
By Alanna Mayham | Sept. 11, 2023 | Courthouse News Service Monday’s order upholds the notion that irrigators’ rights come after the Bureau of Reclamation’s obligations to protected fish species and tribal rights in the Klamath Basin. A magistrate judge in Oregon sided with the Klamath Tribes on Monday in finding that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation violated the Endangered …
Critics Argue Repairs on Oregon Dam Don’t Go Far Enough to Protect Salmon
By Alanna Mayham | Aug. 8, 2023 | Courthouse News Service A nonprofit says fish won’t be able to access their preferred habitats because of the repairs. Some claim the dam needs to go. The Winchester Dam on Oregon’s North Umpqua River closed for three weeks on Monday for repairs and reservoir drawdown in an act that would have appeased …
Oregon Regulators Deny Another Bid for Water at Thornburgh Resort
By Emily Cureton Cook | July 25, 2023 | Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) State regulators have rejected creating new groundwater rights for a controversial destination resort under construction in Central Oregon. The proposed Thornburgh resort is seeking wells for a development near Redmond, in an area where declining groundwater levels have long raised ecological concerns and caused hardships for residents. On …
Historic Change: Facing Drought, Legislators Impose Water Limits on Livestock
By Kendra Chamberlain | July 13, 2023 | Columbia Insight Under a new law, dairy and confined cattle operations in Oregon will no longer have unlimited access to water. Large livestock operations will face stricter water rules in Oregon under a bill passed by state lawmakers earlier this year, in the wake of controversies surrounding the now shuttered mega-dairy Lost …
We Now Know How Much Water Google’s Oregon Data Centers Use After The Dalles Drops Lawsuit Against Journalists
By Sebastian Moss | Dec. 19, 2022 | Data Center Dynamics The data centers use more than a quarter of The Dalles city, and consumption is rising. The Dalles has dropped its lawsuit against The Oregonian, which filed a public records request to see the water deal it signed with Google. That means that how much water Google’s Oregon data …
The Dalles Drops Fight to Keep Google Water Use Private
Andrew Selsky | Dec. 15, 2022 | Associated Press Residents of The Dalles, Oregon, are learning how much of their water Google’s data centers have been using to cool the computers inside the cavernous buildings — information that previously was deemed a trade secret. Google says its data centers in the Oregon town consumed 274.5 million gallons (1 billion liters) …
Race to the Bottom: How Central Oregon Groundwater Sells to the Highest Bidders
By Emily Cureton Cook | July 19, 2022 | Oregon Public Broadcasting In Oregon’s fastest-growing region, more residents are struggling to reach an affordable water supply. A developer’s quest to keep pumping tests what state officials are willing to do about it. Editor’s note: This is the third story in a series about how Oregon officials managing groundwater supplies have …
It’s Feared a Vital Lake in Oregon Could Run Dry Within a Generation
By Emily Cureton Cook with Rachel Martin | April 4, 2022 | NPR Morning Edition In Oregon’s high desert, a lake more than 10,000 years old is drying up. That doesn’t have to happen. Summer Lake hosts millions of migratory birds annually, but its water is being diverted to farms. RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: In southern Oregon’s high desert, an ancient …