Water deal proving divisive

Groups campaign publicly as debate concerning historic agreement grows

By TY BEAVER

H&N Staff Writer

January 22, 2008

   The Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement is either a friend or a foe, depending on who is talking. 

   And both sides – those for and those against the historic settlement that allocates water resources in the Klamath River Basin – are now campaigning publicly. 

   One group paid more than $800 for a newspaper ad, another announced its endorsment, and others are hosting informational meetings before taking a stand on the issue. 

   Here’s a rundown on the latest in the water settlement debate: 

   Meetings announced 

   Klamath Irrigation District, Klamath Water Users Association and the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors are all planning meetings to discuss the agreement. 

    Siskiyou County supervisors will discuss the agreement at 10 a.m. today during at the Siskiyou County Courthouse in Yreka , Calif.  

   Klamath Irrigation District and Klamath Water Users Association will host public hearings Friday and Saturday about how the agreement will affect irrigators on the Klamath Project. 

   “We hope our irrigators will take the time to come learn about what this agreement does and what it doesn’t do,” said Dave Cacka, KID board president, in a press release. 

   Both meetings will be at the Merrill Civic Center in Merrill. The irrigation district will meet at 6:30 p.m. Friday. Members of other irrigation districts, as well as the general public, are invited to attend. 

   The water users will meet at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. The meeting is open to the public.
   Settlement talk representatives, including three tribes, environmental organizations and state and federal agencies, will be available. 

   Web site launched 

   A group called Save the Family Farm purchased an $821 half-page advertisement in Monday’s Herald and News criticizing the agreement, and it has established a Web site to promote its efforts. 

   According to its Web site, www.savethefamily farm. com, the organization is a nonprofit group composed of landowners, irrigators and individuals opposed to the agreement. 

   Group endorsement 

   Klamath County Economic Development Association endorsed the efforts of those involved in settlement discussions for the past two-and-a-half years. 

   But the group said it was concerned about the $960 million implementation cost and the cost of removing four PacifiCorp dams on the Klamath River . 

   Trey Senn , KCEDA executive director, said the cost of removal would likely be too much to saddle with PacifiCorp’s ratepayers alone, and it would be necessary to secure further financial support from the federal government. 

   Collective solution 

   Senn added that his organization liked the idea of different groups in the region working together to address their problems and coming up with a solution. 

   “If we don’t get a settlement, we’re going to be in this terrible looking glass situation,” he said.

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