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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Oct. 12, 1998
98-175
Contact: Sandy Howard Rudnick, public information manager, 360-407-6239
OLYMPIA - The owners of a golf course under construction near Camas and two residences in Battle Ground have been ordered by the state Department of Ecology to stop withdrawing water from nearby rivers and springs.
None of the owners have obtained state permits authorizing them to make the withdrawals.
On Oct. 6, the Department of Ecology (Ecology) ordered the Green Mountain Resort Inc. golf course northwest of Camas to stop diverting surface and spring water for irrigation purposes. Ecology discovered the golf course was intermittently pumping through a 6-inch pipe with the potential of drawing as much as 200 to 300 gallons per minute.
This water ultimately would have flowed through a wetland, into Lacamas Creek and eventually into the lower Columbia River, where salmon and steelhead are on the decline.
In addition, Ecology issued orders to the owners of two residences in Battle Ground to stop diverting water from the east fork of the Lewis River. Personnel from the Department of Fish and Wildlife notified Ecology after they spotted diversion equipment in the river during a fly-over to locate salmon redds (salmon egg nests).
"It's everybody's responsibility to protect our state's water resources and to understand the environmental consequences of their actions," said Mike Harris, Ecology water-resources manager. "It is especially important right now to protect the supply of water in the lower Columbia watershed so salmon can survive."
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
