Comments accepted by Ecology on proposed watershed rule

Published 12:01 am Thursday, May 10, 2012

SEQUIM — The state Department of Ecology will be accepting comments on a proposed Dungeness River watershed water management rule, also known as the in-stream flow rule, until July 9.

Ecology expects adoption of the rule by Aug. 31 after a 5 p.m. open house and 6 p.m. public hearing on the proposal at the Guy Cole Convention Center in Carrie Blake Park, 202 N. Blake Ave.

“The draft water management rule for the Dungeness basin is an excellent example of what collaboration and cooperation between state government and the local community can achieve in protecting our water resources,” Ecology Director Ted Sturdevant said.

“This rule, if adopted, will ensure that the water needs of local residents as well as growth and economic development and fish habitat are met into the future.”

If adopted, Ecology’s new rule will protect existing water supplies for current uses and fish habitat, and make it easier for local governments to affirm that water is legally available for future water uses, Ecology representatives said.

The new rule will bring certainty to the process of obtaining water for new uses in a basin where a growing population and limited water availability have prevented Ecology from permitting new water rights since the 1990s, they said.

The number of wells drilled in the Dungeness Valley has grown from about 150 in the 1970s to hundreds more today.

Rule recommended

A new water management rule for the Dungeness River watershed has been recommended by the Local Leaders Water Management Work Group, which has been working with Ecology since February 2011 to identify water supply issues in the watershed and recommend solutions.

Members of the group include Clallam County, the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe, the city of Sequim, the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Agricultural Water Users Association and Ecology.

Ecology representatives said the proposed rule would:

■ Establish in-stream flow levels (a water right for the stream) in the Dungeness to protect fish and wildlife habitat.

■ Establish reserves of water for future indoor domestic use.

■ Allow water storage projects.

■ Require mitigation for all new use of water, including permit-exempt wells.

■ Require measuring of new water use.

■ Close surface water to new withdrawals, with the exception of seasonal water from the Dungeness.

The new rule will not affect existing water rights at the time the rule becomes effective, including continued use of permit-exempt wells where regular beneficial use began previously, Ecology representatives said.

It would not affect tribal or federal reserved rights to water.

An economic cost-benefit analysis has been completed for the proposed rule. The analysis shows the projected benefits of adopting the new rule exceeding the costs over 20 years.

It is available online at http://tinyurl.com/pdnwater.

The proposed water management rule for the Dungeness River is available at http://tinyurl.com/pdnwater1.

Website visitors can get directions on submitting comments electronically on the rule, submitting comments by email or mailing comments to Ecology.

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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-681-2390 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.