Publication Summary

To better manage water resources in WRIAs 27 and 28, the Lower Columbia Planning Unit recommended that Ecology adopt, through rules, a new water resource management strategy that includes:

Setting instream flow levels in the watershed to protect aquatic resources, including habitat for threatened and endangered salmonids;

Closing most sub-basins to year-round future withdrawals;

Defining where water remains available, including year-round access in regional supply areas, and seasonal interruptible water supplies from larger streams (Kalama, East Fork Lewis, Lewis, and Washougal Rivers);

Establishing water reservations to provide a reliable water supply for the 20-year projected population growth in closed areas; and

Specifying conditions to accessing the water reserves to benefit instream resources and better manage limited supply.