AWRA Annual Conference | Nov. 12-15, 2012

Yakima River Basin Integrated Water Resource

Management Plan

AWRA 2012 IWRM Award Winner

Presented by: Derek Sandison, Director Office of Columbia River Washington State Department of Ecology Andrew Graham, Project Manager HDR Engineering, Inc.

Today’s Presentation

•  Basin Overview and Challenges •  Use of IWRM Principles •  The Integrated Plan •  Costs and Benefits •  Why IRWM is Working

Basin Overview and Challenges

Basin Overview

•  Basin size: 6,155 sq. miles •  Irrigated cropland: 500,000 acres •  Food processing industry: $2.3 billion •  Agricultural production: $1.8 billion

Land Cover

Yakima Project Reservoirs

• Managed by Bureau of Reclamation

•  Five reservoirs with 1 million acre-feet of capacity (average annual runoff 3.3 million acre-feet)

•  Irrigation deliveries: 1.7 million acre-feet

•  Snowpack is the “sixth reservoir”

Declining Water Supply

•  Surface water is over- appropriated

•  Droughts in 1992-1994, 2001 and 2005

•  Proratable irrigation districts reduced to as little as 37% of allotments

•  Instream flows greatly reduced by out-of-stream diversions

Reduced Fisheries

•  Historic salmon and steelhead run size: 800,000 fish

•  Average run size last 10-15 years: 15,000-20,000 fish

•  Native sockeye and summer Chinook: Extirpated

•  Native coho: Once extirpated, now reestablished

•  Spring and fall Chinook: Seriously reduced

•  Steelhead and bull trout: ESA Threatened species

Municipal and Domestic Needs

•  Cities and Counties anticipate continued growth

•  USGS Study showed connectivity with surface flows

•  Most ground water rights are interruptible in dry years

Use of IWRM Principles

in the Yakima River Basin

Integrated Plan Grew from the YRBWEP Program

Process from 2009 to Present

Members  of  the  YRBWEP  Workgroup    Federal  Agencies  Bureau  of  Reclama-on  Na-onal  Marine  Fisheries  Service  U.S.  Fish  and  Wildlife  Service  U.S.  Forest  Service1    Yakama  Na2on  Yakama  Na-on  Natural  Resources  Yakima/Klickitat  Fisheries  Project    Irrigated  Agriculture  Kennewick  Irriga-on  District  KiGtas  Reclama-on  District  Roza  Irriga-on  District  Sunnyside  Valley  Irriga-on  District  Yakima-­‐Tieton  Irriga-on  District    

Washington  State  Agencies  Department  of  Ecology  Department  of  Agriculture  Department  of  Fish  &  Wildlife    Local  Governments  Benton  County  KiGtas  County  Yakima  County  City  of  Yakima    Other  Stakeholders  American  Rivers  Na-onal  Wildlife  Federa-on2  Yakima  Basin  Fish  &  Wildlife  Recovery  Board  Yakima  Basin  Storage  Alliance  

1. Joined Workgroup in 2012. 2. Alternate for American Rivers.

Goals of the Integrated Plan

•  Provide opportunities for ecological restoration and enhancement, including fish passage

•  Improve water supply during drought years (70% proratable supply)

•  Provide for efficient and adaptable water supply management

•  Contribute to sustainable economy and environment

Key Principles

•  Improve outcomes for both society and the environment

•  Build consensus among stakeholders •  Combine a range of solutions •  Evaluate joint outcomes •  Consider change and uncertainty •  Build in adaptability

The Integrated Plan: Projects and Programs

Seven Elements

• Reservoir Fish Passage • Surface storage • Groundwater storage • Enhanced conservation • Market Reallocation • Structural &

Operational Changes • Habitat/Watershed

Protection

Reservoir Fish Passage Element

•  Provide upstream and downstream fish passage •  Benefits:

–  Provide access to high quality habitat –  Increase anadromous species abundance –  Allow reintroduction of sockeye –  Provide genetic interchange for bull trout

Bumping   Kachess  

Keechelus   Rimrock  

Cle  Elum  

Surface Water Storage Element

Wymer Dam and Pump Station

•  New off-channel reservoir, 163,000 acre-feet

Lake Kachess Inactive

Storage •  Existing Reservoir: Access

200,000 acre-feet from inactive storage pool in dry years

Bumping Lake Enlargement •  Replace existing dam to add

165,000 acre-feet

Proposed  Wymer  Reservoir  

Groundwater Storage Element

Use surface water during periods of high runoff Recharge aquifers for later withdrawal

Enhanced Water Conservation Element

Agricultural Conservation – up to 170,000 acre-feet

•  Lining/piping canals and laterals •  Re-regulation reservoirs •  Irrigation efficiency – reduce seepage,

evaporation, and spills Municipal and Domestic Conservation Program

•  Promote efficient landscape irrigation practices

•  Expand education/incentives to encourage voluntary efficiency

•  Establish best practice standards

Market Reallocation Element

Near-term effort •  Build on existing water market programs •  Take steps to reduce barriers

Longer-term effort •  Focus on water transfers between

districts •  Allow fallowing within district, leases to

outside district •  Requires substantial changes to existing

laws/policies

Structural and Operational Changes Element

•  Keechelus-to-Kachess Tunnel or Pipeline

•  Kittitas Reclamation District

canal modifications and new pump station

•  Reduce power diversions at

Roza and Chandler Dams •  Wapatox Canal improvements •  Raise Cle Elum Lake by 3 feet

Habitat/Watershed Protection and Enhancement Element

•  Three areas proposed for acquisition •  46,000 acres in Teanaway Basin •  15,000 acres in Yakima Canyon •  10,000 acres at Little Naches

headwaters •  Consider protective designations on

public lands and waters •  Mainstem Floodplain and Tributaries

Fish Habitat Enhancement Program

Before  

AAer  

Habitat  Restora-on  

Costs and Benefits

Costs of the Integrated Plan

•  If Constructed All at Once: $4.2 Billion (Could range from $3.2 to $5.4 billion)

•  100-Year Cost in “Present Value”: $3.5 Billion

(Construction, O&M, and periodic replacement costs)

All costs expressed in 2012 dollars.

Ecological Benefits

•  Improved stream flow conditions •  Improved operational flexibility to

manage flows and adapt to climate change

•  Improved connectivity/viability of bull trout populations

•  Improved habitat in floodplain, riparian zone, and forested watersheds

•  Increased populations of Chinook, coho, steelhead and sockeye

Projected Increases in Fish Populations

PopulaBon   Increased  Recruitment  Spring/Summer  Chinook   6,000  –  46,700  Fall  Chinook   1,600  –  16,150  Coho   1,650  –  10,700  Steelhead   2,400  –  18,900  Sockeye   170,000  –  380,000  Total   181,650  –  472,450  

Water Supply Benefits

•  Improve drought year supplies to water-short irrigation districts

•  Provide water for growth in municipal and domestic well uses

•  Improve security of junior water rights in the Basin

Benefits Quantified in Economic Analysis

•  Improved agricultural production in water-short years

•  Improved fish populations and public’s willingness-to-pay

•  Value of water for municipal growth

•  Value of secure supplies for existing municipal/domestic users

Results

Category   QuanBfied  Benefits  

Salmon/Steelhead  Recovery   $5.0  –  7.4  Billion  

Irrigated  Agriculture    (Drought  Years)  

$0.8  Billion  

Municipal/Domes-c  Supplies   $0.4  Billion  

Total   $6.2  to  8.6  Billion  

Comparison of Benefits and Costs

All values expressed as present value, in 2012 dollars.

B/C Ratios for a Range of Outcomes

Conclusion

Why IWRM Is Working

•  It addresses inter-connected resources

•  It solves multiple problems that single-purpose projects can’t

•  It provides for adaptation in the face of change and uncertainty

•  It draws support from diverse stakeholders and permitting agencies

Questions / Discussion

•  Ecology’s Website: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wr/cwp/cr_yak_storage.html

•  Reclamation’s Website: http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/yrbwep/2011integratedplan/index.html

Yakima River Basin Integrated Water Resource

Management Plan

Schedule

•  Final Programmatic EIS – Completed March 2012 •  Framework for Implementation Document –

Completed October 2012 •  Formation of Federal Agency Support Group – Fall

2012 •  State Legislation/Capital Budget Request – January

2013 •  Workgroup Seeking Federal Funding – 2013 and

beyond

Proposed Wymer Reservoir

Before  

AAer  

Kachess Inactive Storage Project

Bumping Lake Enlargement

K-to-K Conveyance Project

Yakima Project Reservoirs

Environmental Quality Evaluation

Additional Benefits Not Quantified

•  Species other than salmon/ steelhead

•  Agricultural output during less severe droughts

•  Increases in drought frequency or severity

•  Recreational opportunities •  Cultural/spiritual values of fish

to Yakama Nation and other Tribes