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Methow Valley News October 7, 1999 Endangered Species Coverage Does Yakima action have local parallel? by Lee Hicks Sound familiar? It might seem at times that the Methow basin is the only watershed getting special attention on water issues from state and federal regulators. But the Methow has company in the Yakima River basin, which will undergo a five-year, $6 million study focusing on the relationship of ground and surface water. Meanwhile, the state Department of Ecology has decided not to issue any new well permits in the Yakima basin while the study is underway, leaving in limbo some of about 1,000 applications. Ecology director Tom Fitzsimmons was quoted in statewide reports as saying the department might allow some transfers of water rights. But DOE is working on a new Yakima basin water rule that will in effect create a building moratorium. "Rural economic development is threatened here, but it is not extinct," Fitzsimmons is quoted in an Associated Press report. Ecology signed an agreement for the multi-year ground and surface water study with the Yakama Nation and the federal Bureau of Reclamation. A statement from DOE said the agreement was reached after two years of negotiations, "to resolve several outstanding legal cases and other crucial water resource issues." The Yakima decision appears to have parallels with current negotiations in the Methow Valley toward a memorandum of agreement among Ecology, National Marine Fisheries Service and other state and federal agencies. That proposed MOA is being promoted by NMFS to address endangered fish species protection and recovery. Fitzsimmons said, in a prepared statement, that the Yakima basin agreement recognizes that, "we all want more water, but we also have to protect senior water rights and on top of that, we need to set aside more water in rivers and streams for fish." The Yakama Nation had challenged dozens of agricultural well permits in the basin beginning in 1993. The tribe argued that wells would deplete surface water, harm fish and threaten senior water rights. Prior to announcement of the agreement, a number of permit holders agreed to contribute to a fund managed by the Bureau of Reclamation in exchange for retaining their well permits. Those funds would be used to purchase water rights that would be used for instream flows. The concept of the water bank in the proposed new water rule for the Methow basin would be similar in that it dedicates water "deposited" to the bank for instream flows. Water could be withdrawn later for agricultural or development uses. That water rule is not in doubt after a recent announcement by Ecology officials that the department will make major changes and re-submit a new rule for a public hearing in the Methow basin. Opinion | Sports |
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