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Department of Ecology News Release - March 21, 2008
08-075
ELLENSBURG – The public can comment on a draft groundwater management agreement at two open house meetings in Kittitas County on March 24 and 25, 2008.
The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) and Kittitas County prepared the draft agreement to guide how decisions are made on residential developments served by exempt wells until more is known about the aquifers and water supplies in northern Kittitas County.
Last year, a citizens group petitioned Ecology seeking a temporary moratorium on wells that are exempt from water right permits. Concerns were raised that some developers were drilling exempt wells for multi-home subdivisions when they may need a water right to do so.
In November, as an alternative to the moratorium, the county and Ecology entered into talks to resolve the issue. The draft agreement calls for a study that will define the hydrogeology of upper Kittitas County. The study will provide information about water availability and the relationship between surface and groundwater supplies. Information gathered from the study will be used to develop long-term water management strategies.
The 2008 Legislature approved Gov. Chris Gregoire’s request to provide $300,000 in funding for the groundwater study. The governor also requested and received $383,000 in funding for Ecology and Kittitas County to implement provisions of the groundwater agreement. Ecology will hire a watermaster for the region and the county will add staff and purchase equipment to work on water issues related to rural developments.
The draft agreement outlines interim management measures that would be put in place while the study is under way. Those measures would require new residential developments served by exempt wells to be limited to 5,000 gallons per day for each 40 acres of land for all domestic, lawn, landscaping and non-commercial garden water uses on that land, and would require metering.
Comments on the agreement will be accepted during two open houses set for 6-9 p.m.:
The draft agreement may be viewed online at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us/cds/current/ and http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wr/wrhome.html.
Hard copies of the agreement are available at the Kittitas County Development Services Center in Ellensburg at 411 North Ruby St. and at Ecology’s office in Yakima at 15 W. Yakima Ave., Suite 200, Yakima, WA 98902. Written comments will be accepted through April 2, 2008, and may be made online at the Ecology Water Resources website listed above or to either addresses listed above, Attn: Kittitas MOA.
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Contact information:
Tom Tebb, Department of Ecology, water resources program, 509-574-3989
Darryl Piercy, Kittitas County director of Community Development Services,
509-933-8228
Media contact:
Dan Partridge, Department of Ecology, 360-407-7139
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
