Funding for a long-running habitat restoration project in Oregon's John Day River basin is on the ropes following a split vote last week by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
A motion to provide $474,000 in fiscal year 2008 for the Mainstem, Middle Fork, John Day Rivers Fish Habitat Enhancement Project failed on a 4-4 vote. The project has been funded through the Council's Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program since 1984.
Funding foes on the Council argued that project managers inadequately addressed requests from the Council and its Independent Scientific Review Panel for an accounting of the project's accomplishments.
The lack of a Council funding recommendation leaves the project's status uncertain. The Bonneville Power Administration, which funds the Council program, favors the project.
"In a nutshell, this project is implementing on-the-ground work that is benefiting listed species," particularly steelhead, Bill Maslen, BPA's fish and wildlife director, told the Council's Fish and Wildlife Committee Sept. 16 during its meeting in Astoria, Ore. The federal power marketing agency has fish and wildlife funding obligations under both the Northwest Power Act, which directs the NPCC, and the Endangered Species Act.
"We certainly support the on-the-ground elements," Maslen said. The John Day River has the ESA designation of critical habitat for listed Mid-Columbia steelhead. The project is mentioned in NOAA Fisheries Service's 2008 Federal Columbia River Power System biological opinion, which was developed in consultation with BPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation. BiOps judge whether federal actions jeopardize the survival of listed species.
BPA in its funding decision for 2007-2009 actually boosted the project from the $340,000 recommended annually by the Council to $540,000 in 2007 and 2008 and $474,000 in 2008. The agency noted that the budget was "augmented to support on-the-ground benefits for riparian enhancement and added to renew conservation easements."
The Council's 2007-2009 recommendation was conditional, requiring the project sponsor, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, to develop an accomplishments report in response to a request from the ISRP. Funding was to hinge on a favorable ISRP review.
ODFW responded in March 2007 but in April the ISRP asked for more information. More exchanges between the ISRP, Council staff and the state agency resulted in a staff recommendation earlier this year that the project be transitioned to close-out. The Council decided in May to give ODFW 60 more days to respond.
The response was delivered and in July the ISRP found that the project "meets scientific criteria" though with qualifications.
A Sept. 4 staff memo recommended that "the earlier biological data reporting and analysis conditions placed on this project be considered as met. This project, however, must address the 'qualifications' identified in the final ISRP review in the next review process."
The memo said that the ability to collect requested information was hampered to some degree by the Council's and BPA's decision to "de-emphasize the need to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of each individual habitat project due to the high expense and absence of satisfactory results." Monitoring and evaluation budgets are now, for the most part, limited to 5 percent of the overall project budget.
The final ISRP review of the John Day project data noted the monitoring issue.
"Because the John Day subbasin is critically important to Columbia River basin salmon and steelhead resources, and because habitat conditions on private lands are critical to the overall functioning of this subbasin, continuing the project while refining it may be warranted," the ISRP said." The sponsors appear to understand the required designs and methods for monitoring the projects but are unable to obtain support through the Fish and Wildlife Program/BPA.
"An adequate fish and fish habitat monitoring program that would serve both the Council and other program projects (OWEB, Pacific Salmon Fund) within the subbasin is needed," the ISRP said.
The project sponsors have said that many projects being carried out in the basin make it more difficult to separate out the exact benefits that their habitat work might be providing.
Washington Councilor Dick Wallace suggest a motion that granted funding, again with qualification that the ISRP's concerns be addressed and that an independent syntheses of data from all projects in the John Day subbasin be completed to allow a portrayal of overall accomplishments.
Maslen said he supported that approach.
But half of the Council disagreed. Montana's Bruce Measure and Rhonda Whiting, Idaho's Jim Yost and Washington's Tom Karier voted against the measure. Karier said funding the project perpetuates the status quo of more than 20 years of inadequate reporting.
Wallace, Oregon's Joan Dukes and Melinda Eden and Council Chairman Bill Booth of Idaho voted for the motion.
"The project is a good, solid project and in an important subbasin," Dukes said.
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* State Distributing $46 Million To Develop More Water Supply For Eastern Washington
The Washington Department of Ecology is funding more than $46 million in projects designed to develop additional water supplies throughout eastern Washington.
Some $14 million in smaller grants will fund studies or construction costs for 14 conservation and storage projects sponsored by local conservation districts, irrigation concerns and watershed groups, while several larger projects are being funded in partnership with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's Columbia Basin Project and other irrigation and tribal partnerships.
The grants were announced at a special meeting of the Columbia River Policy Advisory Group in Moses Lake. The panel -- representing a broad spectrum of interests including agriculture, cities, tribes, environmental groups and state and federal entities -- was consulted as part of the competitive grant process.
In 2006, the Washington Legislature made $200 million available to develop water supplies that enhance stream flows for fish and meet out-of-stream water needs for cities, farms and industry in the Columbia River basin.
Grants will fund a variety of projects from piping unlined irrigation canals to storing water both above and below ground, recharging declining aquifers, and making existing water delivery systems more efficient. Water saved through these projects will be made available for new water rights or released to the river when fisheries need it the most.
"These projects provide an array of opportunities to develop new water supplies along the Columbia River," said Jay Manning, agency director. "They will help us to manage our water more efficiently and in turn make water available to support growing communities and declining fish runs. It's a winning formula for the many competing interests along the river."
Construction projects funded could result in as much as 7,435 acre-feet of additional water to enhance stream flows for fish and 1,449 acre-feet for out-of-stream uses like irrigation. The feasibility studies being funded could yield millions of acre-feet of water to support farms, cities, industry and the environment. The $46.4 million in funding is expected to generate near-term economic activity valued at $87 million.
These projects have been awarded funds in the first competitive grant cycle for the program.
-- Barker Ranch, $5.6 million
Water delivery will be made more efficient by converting open ditches to a closed pipe system. The increased efficiency will allow Barker Ranch in Benton County to divert less water from the Yakima River, adding an additional 6,436 acre-feet of water to stream flows when fish need it the most.
-- Lincoln County Passive Rehydration, $925,000
The funding will study the feasibility of rehydrating aquifers in Lincoln and Adams counties. The study will look at diverting water into dry stream to facilitate percolation into the aquifers for storage until needed.
-- Foster Creek Surface Water Storage, $93,750
The grant will fund studies of two potential water storage sites in Douglas County, one at Rock Island Creek and the other Foster Coulee. The Rock Island Creek Site would store approximately 60,000 ac-ft of water. Depending on the configuration of the impoundments, the Foster Coulee site would provide storage for 96,250 to 194,700 ac-ft.
-- Mill Creek Water Storage Project, $125,000
The grant will be used to examine the feasibility of a water storage site in Stevens County. Various dam heights will be studied with storage capacity ranging from 2,050 to 10,700 ac-ft.
-- Rock Lake Water Supply and Habitat Enhancement Study, $124,000
Funds will be provided to study the potential for small storage at Rock Lake in Whitman County. As much as 110,000 ac-feet of storage may be available.
-- Manastash Creek Restoration Project: Manastash Ditch, $376, 000
The grant will help pay for piping the Manastash Water Ditch Association's earthen unlined ditch from the Kittitas Reclamation District's South Branch to Hanson Road, approximately 4,440 feet. The resulting gain in efficiency will add 454 ac-ft to stream flows.
-- Boise Wallula Aquifer Storage Project, $4.5 million
Funding will be provided to build an aquifer storage system in Walla Walla County. Water used for cooling a paper plant will be pumped into the aquifer and stored for later released as cold water into the river. The system will also provide a water savings of 1,657 ac-ft.
--- The Lands Council Beaver Population Enhancement and Water Storage, $30,000
The grant will pay for a study examining natural ways to re-time spring runoff in northeastern Washington. Specifically, it will determine if wetlands created by beavers could be used to slow runoff so that more water arrives at the Columbia River during the summer when it is needed. A pilot study will determine how much storage is feasible through a voluntary beaver introduction program.
--- White Salmon Buck Creek to Grand Ronde Aquifer ASR, $956,950
Funding is granted for construction of an aquifer storage and recharge system to inject surplus capacity water during the winter months into wells along the White Salmon River in Klickitat County. The water would be withdrawn during the summer months to supplement in-stream flows in the White Salmon River.
--- Campbell Creek Reservoir, $250,000
Grant monies will be expended for a study of construction of an off- stream reservoir that will store 500 ac-ft of water and release it to the Peshastin Irrigation District to supplant Peshastin Creek diversions in Chelan County. Releases will occur in July through September.
--- Franklin CD Irrigation Water Management, $78,000
The grant to the Franklin Conservation District funds a study to document and develop a program to capture the conserved water that could be gained by implementing Irrigation Water Management (Adams, Franklin, Grant, and Lincoln counties). It is estimated that the methods studied could yield as much as 394,400 ac-ft of water savings.
--- Storage at Goose Lake and 9 Mile Flat, $600,000
Funding provided for an appraisal study of two possible surface water storage sites in Okanogan and Ferry Counties, each more than 1 million ac-ft in size. Water will be pumped from the Columbia River to the storage sites on Colville Tribal lands.
--- Horse Heaven Hills Surface Storage & Conveyance, $170,000
The grant funds an appraisal study of diverting water from the John Day-McNary Pool during the winter and spring months to a new surface storage site in the Glade-Four-mile Sub-basin in Benton and Klickitat counties. A new conveyance system will also be studied.
--- Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie, $250,000
Funding is granted for analysis of the viability of aquifer storage and recovery in the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie aquifer. The plan will assess whether water diverted from the Spokane River or Lake Pend Oreille during high flow periods can be injected into the SVRP aquifer and gravity drain back to the Columbia River.
These projects are being funded in cooperation with the US Bureau of Reclamation, Kennewick Irrigation District and the Colville Indian Tribe.
--- Pinto Dam & Upper Crab Creek, $10 Million
The allocation pays for modifications to the existing Pinto Dam in Grant County. They are needed to allow larger flows into Upper Crab Creek. Likewise, road culvert replacement, land acquisition and the relocation of existing structures are necessary because of the increased flows in the creek and the increased flooding risk associated with them.
--- Odessa Subarea Special Study, $6 million
The funds will be used to complete an environmental impact statement, a planning report, and other associated studies Ecology is conducting with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The study examines a number of options for replacing groundwater with surface water for use in irrigation. Finding a new water source for the Odessa Subarea is important because declining aquifers in the region could cost the state as much as $630 million dollars annually in regional sales and 3,600 jobs.
--- KID Pump Exchange, $15 million
The funding, along with proposed federal and local funding would pay for new pump stations at Kiona and Edison Street in Benton County. Kennewick Irrigation District would forego a portion of their diversion at Prosser Dam in exchange for equal diversions lower on the Yakima and Columbia rivers. The project will increase stream flows in a critical stretch of the Yakima River and provide irrigation to Red Mountain.
--- Mitigation Projects related to the Colville Tribes Agreement, $1.3 million
One-time fisheries, cultural resources, and parks mitigation funding is incorporated in the state's agreement with the Colville Tribes for storage releases from Lake Roosevelt. This commitment fully retires these obligations.
More information is on Ecology's website at http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wr/cwp/cr_08fund.html