Three Oregon Bills Aim To Fend Off Water Shortages

As the prospect of water shortages stares down various regions of the country, Oregon is considering a suite of water bills designed to address groundwater problems.

State Rep. Ken Helm introduced the legislation with the aim of addressing the state’s “groundwater crisis,” according to The Oregonian. Ranchers appear to be pumping groundwater at an unsustainable rate, and the state is not keeping tabs on how much groundwater it has, the report said.

Oregon is hardly alone. A government report “found that water managers in 40 of 50 states expect water shortages in some portion of their states under average conditions in the next 10 years,” according to the U.S. EPA.

Helm introduced three bills to confront these issues. HB 2706 would enact the following policies, per the report:

[It would] charge water users a $100 annual management fee, money that would help pay for groundwater research. The fee caps water users at $1,000 in annual costs if they have multiple water rights, and cities at $2,500. Personal wells are exempt. The bill, advocates say, would raise roughly $8 million per biennium [for the state].

But Oregon irrigators, including farmers, are wary of legislation that could potentially add to their financial burden. Some farmers testified against the bill at a hearing this week, according to the Portland Tribune.

"Would $100 break a bunch of farmers out there? Probably not, but there is always the straw that broke the camel's back," said Dave Jensen, a farmer with the Klamath Water Users Association.

A second bill from Helm, HB 2705, “would require water users install a measuring device that captures the rate and amount of water at each point diverted from the water source,” The Oregonian reported.

This proposal also faces opposition. “Complying with the requirement would be expensive and the Oregon Water Resources Department doesn't have enough staff to analyze the new information anyway, said John O'Keeffe, president of the Oregon Cattlemen's Association,” according to the Portland Tribune.

Proponents say the legislation would help protect water resources in Oregon.

“Water conservation groups argued that a new funding source is needed because [the state’s] cost of administering water rights is largely borne by state taxpayers. The private interests who primarily benefit from the system, meanwhile, only pay a one-time application fee to establish water rights,” the Portland Tribune reported, citing Kimberley Priestley, senior policy analyst with WaterWatch of Oregon.

“This is the public’s water,” Priestley said.

Helm also introduced legislation calling for “an unspecified amount of general fund dollars to help pay for groundwater studies. The state has said it would cost $45 million to $75 million to finish studying the state's groundwater basins,” The Oregonian reported.

To read more about ways of preserving water sources visit Water Online’s Source Water Scarcity Solutions Center.

Image caption, per USDA: “This freshwater spring is a direct tributary to the Metolius River on the Deschutes National Forest in Oregon.”