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Department of Ecology News Release - August 3, 2007
07-215
OLYMPIA - Population growth, over-allocation of water, saltwater intrusion on groundwater, and naturally occurring low flows in streams and creeks are some of the factors stressing local water supplies in the Quilcene-Snow watershed.
About 50 residents living in the watershed of the northwest Olympic Peninsula learned not only of the problems Tuesday night but also got a glimpse of the water management tools available to them to ensure adequate water supplies in the future for people, farms and fish.
It was the second in a series of community forums hosted by the Washington State Department of Ecology to give the public an opportunity to comment on the process Ecology is using to adopt an "instream flow rule" for the Quilcene-Snow watershed (Water Resource Inventory Area 17 or WRIA 17). Flow rules establish water rights for streams that extend to fish and other instream resources. Based on historical information, a rule specifies the amount of water needed at a particular stream location on a month-to-month basis. Once adopted, an instream flow rule does not affect existing water rights, only future decisions on water resources.
Joe Stohr, special assistant to the director of Ecology, told those attending the presentation and forum at Chimacum High School that the department is working on developing management tools that will protect water resources in WRIA 17 for the next 25 years.
"We're at the listening stage still, moving into the problem identification stage but we're looking to you for options and solutions," Stohr said.
Projections based on U.S. Census Bureau and state agency data show the population in Jefferson County could grow to about 40,000 people by 2025 from an estimated 29,200 today. Based on the construction activity of recent years and the location of vacant lots suitable for future building, the growth will continue to be concentrated where it is already, such as the Port Townsend area, Chimacum and in the Ludlow sub-basin of the watershed.
Ecology has identified 10 sub-basins in the watershed and relying on comments from the first public forum in May have projected that water resources in each basin may need to be managed differently according to the factors stressing that basin's water supply.
For example, naturally occurring low flows in Chimacum Creek can dip below 5 cubic feet per second in the late summer and early fall from highs of 35 to more than 45 cfs in the months of February, March and April. (One cubic foot equals 7.4 gallons of water.)
"The streams in this watershed typically show a pattern like this," Stohr said, and that gives Ecology a problem meeting its legislative mandate to protect fish habitat.
"We've gotten very clear direction from the state Legislature in three different statutes to maintain, sustain and enhance fish populations," Stohr said.
Among the tools Ecology staff and local watershed planners may deploy on the water management challenges in the Quilcene-Snow (WRIA17) are:
Public involvement in developing water management tools for WRIA 17 will continue as local governments and Indian tribes in the watershed work with Ecology this summer and fall on draft instream flow rule options. Ecology's timetable calls for public hearings to be held on a draft rule proposal and the department will respond to public comments before adopting a new instream flow rule in the spring of 2008.
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Contact: Dan Partridge, public information officer, 360-407-6607
For a look at the data and presentation from the Chimacum forum, go to the Ecology website on the Quilcene-Snow watershed: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wr/instream-flows/quilsnowbasin.html
For more information on water resources: http://water.jefferson.wsu.edu
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
