Methow Watershed Planning (WRIA 48)

Lead agency contact:

Jackie Moriarity
Town of Twisp
(509) 997-4081
jackiem@townoftwisp.com

Ecology contact:

Rusty Post
Department of Ecology
(509) 997-1363
rpos461@ecy.wa.gov

Implementation phase:

Planning phase: Phase 4 (Starting September 2007)

Plan adopted: June 20, 2005

Optional elements: Quality

Grants awarded: About $1,074,000 through June 2005

Plan website: Methow Watershed Council

Progress

The Methow Basin Planning Unit released a preliminary review draft of their watershed plan in June 2003, which is available at the Methow Basin Planning Unit website. Their final plan is due for completion this fall, 2003.

In 2000, the state legislature provided additional funding for the Planning Unit to establish a baseline hydrologic assessment, including a groundwater study and model, development of a USGS watershed model, and completion of a water quantity assessment. Golder Associates and the USGS calibrated and collected data from twenty-three stream gauges, modeling groundwater and surface water in the watershed, and conducted a sub-basin specific detailed groundwater study. Information gathered during these efforts is available from the web site above and in their final Phase 2 Level 1 assessment.

Other work products from the Planning Unit include a watershed planning work plan, an assessment of limiting factors for salmon recovery, and a Lower Chewuch River Snorkel Survey. The Planning Unit chose not to examine instream flows, concluding that flows established in 1976 should not be modified. A water storage assessment which compiles previous studies and provides a new analysis using a USGS basin model has also been developed by the Planning Unit.

The Methow Basin Planning Unit (MBPU) met twice monthly from the Fall of 2004 through the Fall of 2006, discussing various options for restructuring the group. The group decided to become a nine member board with members appointed by the three Initiating Governments (Okanogan County, Town of Twisp and the Methow Valley Irrigation District), to be known as the Methow Watershed Council (MWC). The three Initiating Governments each hold one of the nine seats with the other six held by community representatives.

The Council held its first meeting in May 2007 to begin selection of officers, approve by-laws and develop scopes of work for the implementation phase. The Council is submitting four grant applications to the Department of Ecology to support watershed planning activities in the Methow basin; administrative support, data gathering and analysis for revision to the instream flow rule (WAC 173-548), stream gauging and measuring, and Phase 4 watershed plan implementation.

Studies or data relevant to planning for this area

Methow (48)

Other resources

Washington State Department of Ecology home page

Please send additions or corrections to Chris Anderson, (360) 407-6634.