Alliance director happy with progress made  

   Before that, he worked for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the agency in charge of the Project, and was in an agency office when the decision to shut off the water was made. Never before had such a decision been made.

   “I remember, just internally, that all the Reclamation people were shocked,” he said.

   The next three and a half years contained more than their fair share of tension, anger and strife. Water was eventually restored to the Project, but there was a massive fish die-off in 2002. Along with the   water shutoff, those living the upper and lower reaches of the Klamath River watershed began to view each other as bitter opponents.  

   “Those two incidents were the catalysts for so much,” Keppen said.

   Litigation and attacks through the media became commonplace during Keppen’s   tenure as Klamath Water Users Association executive director. Irrigators faced uncertainty regarding their water supply, which led to uncertain financing for their farming operations. Growing unease about affordable power added to the worries.

   Keppen said Project irrigators considered several ways to bring more certainty, and settlement was their last option. None of the others — including working oneon-one with PacifiCorp and forming a public utility district — panned   out. Irrigators then eyed PacifiCorp’s relicensing of the four Klamath River hydroelectric dams.

   “It got to the point that we thought we better be at the table in these discussions with (the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission),” Keppen said.

   While settlement was last option, Keppen believes it needed to happen. Since the talks, relations between groups that once hated each other have improved, and there’s more certainty for the Project.  

   Keppen isn’t with Klamath Water Users Association anymore, and he knows work still needs to be done on the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement, especially to address the concerns of off-Project irrigators. But he’s happy with the progress that’s been made.

   “Overall, I just think working together is a better approach than fighting each other,” he said.