Oregon Water Resources Department Grant for Upper Klamath Basin Measurement and Monitoring Project

The agricultural economy of the upper Klamath Basin relies on irrigation water. Just over 500,000 acres are irrigated in the upper Klamath Basin, about 190,000 acres of which are within the Klamath Project developed and operated by the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) (Burt and Freeman, 2003; Natural Resources Conservation Service, 2004). The principal source of water for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) Klamath Project is Upper Klamath Lake (UKL). In recent years, Endangered Species Act biological opinions have required Reclamation to maintain certain lake levels in Upper Klamath Lake to protect habitat for endangered fish (specifically the Lost River and short nose suckers) and at the same time maintain specified stream flows in the Klamath River below the lake and project diversions to provide habitat for listed salmon.

The surface water has been relied upon as the primary water source for the Klamath irrigation community, and has led to many hardships during recent periods of increased drought. A better understanding of these drought conditions and how to forecast inflows and manage water resources during droughts is becoming increasingly important in the Klamath Basin. This grant, supported by drought-relief funding, will be used for improving the stream inflow forecast methodology, as well as to construct a decommissioned river gage station that was destroyed during a 2015 storm, and provide an improved instrumentation device measurement standard for the basin to be implemented so that Reclamation can better meet its mission of managing water.

The activity to be funded is similar to the work that Oregon Water Resources Department
(OWRD) has been involved with in the Klamath Basin. OWRD is involved with measuring streamflow and groundwater in the basin, and has management and local personnel available to assist with the tasks outlined in the grant.

RECIPIENT INVOLVEMENT
The objective of this grant is to use funds for the formation of an Upper Klamath Water Measurement Coordination group, with members from U.S. Geological Services, OWRD, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Technical Service Center and other interested parties (i.e., local irrigation districts, Oregon Institute of Technology, Klamath Water Users Association, etc.). The group will encourage knowledge sharing, coordinate on water-measurement techniques, improve the Project measurement methodology, identify/develop a suite of accurate, standardized, cost effective, low maintenance “on field level” water measurement options for Klamath Project water deliveries, and to develop and implement a cost effective water measurement device verification process for Klamath Project landowners. Secondly, this grant will be used to install and monitor a new Seven Mile gauge station that was damaged during high flows in 2015. And thirdly. This grant will be used for call water quantification and stream inflow forecast improvement for the basin.

RECLAMATION INVOLVEMENT

No substantial involvement on the part of Reclamation is anticipated for the successful completion of the objectives to be funded by this award. It is anticipated that Reclamation’s involvement will consist of standard federal stewardship responsibilities such as monitoring project performance, technical assistance at the request of the recipient, etc.

SINGLE-SOURCE JUSTIFICATION
Reclamation did not solicit full and open competition for this award based the following criteria:

(4) UNIQUE QUALIFICATIONS

Single Source Justification Description:

OWRD is involved with measuring streamflow and groundwater in the basin, and has management and local personnel available to assist with the tasks outlined in the grant. This grant will be a short duration period of approximately 15 months, and OWRD has a staffed office in the basin qualified to perform the work.

STATUTORY AUTHORITY
Public Law 106-498

To authorize the Bureau of Reclamation to conduct certain feasibility
studies to augment water supplies for the Klamath Project, Oregon and
California, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Klamath Basin Water Supply
Enhancement Act of 2000”.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION TO CONDUCT FEASIBILITY STUDIES.

In order to help meet the growing water needs in the Klamath River
Basin, to improve water quality, to facilitate the efforts of the State of Oregon to resolve water rights claims in the Upper Klamath River Basin including facilitation of Klamath tribal water rights claims, and to reduce conflicts over water between the Upper and Lower Klamath Basins, the Secretary of the Interior (hereafter referred to as the “Secretary”) is authorized and directed, in consultation with affected State, local and tribal interests, stakeholder groups and the interested public, to engage in feasibility studies of the following proposals related to the Upper Klamath Basin and the Klamath Project, a Federal reclamation project in Oregon and California:

(1) Increasing the storage capacity, and/or the yield of the
Klamath Project facilities while improving water quality,
consistent with the protection of fish and wildlife.

(2) The potential for development of additional Klamath
Basin groundwater supplies to improve water quantity and
quality, including the effect of such groundwater development on
non-project lands, groundwater and surface water supplies, and
fish and wildlife.

(3) The potential for further innovations in the use of
existing water resources, or market-based approaches, in order
to meet growing water needs consistent with State water law.

SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL STUDIES.

(a) Nonproject Lands.–The Secretary may enter into an agreement
with the Oregon Department of Water Resources to fund studies relating
to the water supply needs of nonproject lands in the Upper Klamath
Basin.
(b) Surveys.–To further the purposes of this Act, the Secretary is
authorized to compile information on native fish species in the Upper
Klamath River Basin, upstream of Upper Klamath Lake.

[[Page 114 STAT. 2222]]

Wherever possible, the Secretary should use data already developed by
Federal agencies and other stakeholders in the Basin.
(c) Hydrologic Studies.–The Secretary is directed to complete
ongoing hydrologic surveys in the Klamath River Basin currently being
conducted by the United States Geological Survey.
(d) <> Reporting Requirements.–The Secretary
shall submit the findings of the studies conducted under section 2 and
section 3(a) of this Act to the Congress within 90 days of each study’s completion, together with any recommendations for projects.

SEC. 4. LIMITATION.

Activities funded under this Act shall not be considered a
supplemental or additional benefit under the Act of June 17, 1902 (82
Stat. 388) and all Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto.

SEC.5. WATER RIGHTS

Nothing in this Act shall be construed to–
(1) create, by implication or otherwise, any reserved water
right or other right to the use of water;
(2) invalidate, preempt, or create any exception to State
water law or an interstate compact governing water;
(3) alter the rights of any State to any appropriated share
of the waters of any body or surface or groundwater, whether
determined by past or future interstate compacts or by past or
future legislative or final judicial allocations;
(4) preempt or modify any State or Federal law or interstate
compact dealing with water quality or disposal; or
(5) confer upon any non-Federal entity the ability to
exercise any Federal right to the waters of any stream or to any groundwater resources.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There are authorized such sums as necessary to carry out the
purposes of this Act. Activities conducted under this Act shall be
nonreimbursable and nonreturnable.

Approved November 9, 2000.