August 7, 2005
It's disappointing that a proposed agreement made in February that could settle some of the fighting over water in the Klamath Basin hasn't gone very far. That's either because of a lack of detail in the proposal or a lack of interest by the federal government, depending on who's talking.
Regardless of the reason, though, the important thing is to keep plugging away.
At issue is a proposal floated in February between a number of irrigators above Upper Klamath Lake and the Klamath Tribes, and presented to the federal government because it hinges on federal funds.
Under the proposal, the Tribes and some irrigators would stop contesting each other's claims for water rights in the state's water adjudication process. It also called for the federal government to spend $200 million over 20 years on environmental projects in the Basin's upper reaches. Included would be additional water storage.
The group sent the proposal to the Department of Interior officials in Washington, D.C., and not much appears to have happened since.
At the time, we said the proposal was a major step forward in both the decades-long process of adjudication and in creating a positive context that could lead to the settlement of other issues involving the Basin's water.
It should be noted, though, that irrigators in the Klamath Reclamation Project weren't included in the proposed agreement, nor were non-project irrigators below Upper Klamath Lake. Even if the proposal had sailed through, there would have been much remaining to settle.
In a July 27 Herald and News article, the group supporting the proposal criticized the Department of Interior for a lack of interest. Last week, local Bureau of Reclamation officials told the Herald and News that the proposal needed more details.
The Bureau of Reclamation, which is part of the Department of Interior, is trying to develop a Basinwide approach to the Klamath Basin water problem, and the third draft of where that stands is expected out in October.
Things done on a piecemeal basis, as this proposal would be, have to be good fit for the overall "solution." That doesn't mean, though, that the pieces have to wait for the overall plan to be finished. In fact, the Bureau has moved forward on such things as water storage on the Barnes Ranch, and the Rangeland Trust, which includes paying some irrigators above the lake to cut their water use. The Tribes-irrigators proposal could fall into the same category, though the price tag is much larger.
Our guess is the bigger the price tag, the slower something moves.
The proposal never generated much noise.
What seemed to us to be a significant step forward was met with a response, both within Congress and the executive branch of government, that could at best be described as perfunctory. We hope that people haven't become jaded with Klamath Basin water issues in a way that would erode the help the Basin needs in finding solutions.
Perhaps, too, the speed - or lack, thereof - is a matter of the process. The federal government moves at its own speed and it can take awhile.
Both the plan's supporters and the Department of Interior should make sure the other side has what it needs to determine if this proposal can be part of the answer to the Basin water problems. And if any feelings got hurt over how this was handled, get over it.
Source: http://www.heraldandnews.com/articles/2005/08/08/viewpoints/editorials/views1.txt