Action Alert: We Oppose Senate Bills 5517 and 5622
Washington's waters are a precious but finite resource. Two senate bills scheduled for hearing on Monday have the potential to undo years of work in protecting salmon habitat and WA water rights.
Amicus Brief: In Support of WA Ecology & Pollution Control Hearings Board
The case began when Burbank and Pasco submitted applications to transfer a water right and change its place of use. Burbank was attempting to transfer part of its water rights to the city of Pasco, in exchange for $550,000, and…
Comment: Snohomish County’s Draft Water Code
Following the 'Hirst Decision' (2016) and RCW 90.94 (2018), Snohomish County found it's county code out of compliance. As a result, all rural development had to stop until a new way to move forward with issuing building permits, without allowing…
Comment: Spokane Valley/Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer New Water Right
The city of Airway Heights (The City) currently pumps water from several small aquifers: the Airway Heights Paleochannel Aquifer, the Wanapum Unit, and the Grande Ronde Unit. The City would like to begin pumping from the Spokane Valley/Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer…
Comment: Ecology’s Darrington & US Golden Eagle Draft Decision
US Golden Eagle (USGE) is a multinational corporation based in Canada. It currently has a water right for consumptive use on the Skagit River system in order to irrigate hundreds of acres of blueberries. USGE recently submitted an application for…
Comment: Crown Columbia Water Resources
Crown Columbia Water Resources, LLC (Crown Columbia) is a so-called “water banking operation” that holds a portfolio of water rights to use for mitigation for future uses. Crown Columbia is affiliated with a larger corporation called Petrus Partners Ltd., based…
Comment: Advocating for Nooksack River Adjudication
During the 2019 legislative session, the state directed and provided funding to the Department of Ecology to assess watersheds that would benefit most from a water right adjudication process. Adjudication is one tool in our water management toolbox. It is…
Comment: Goldendale Energy Storage Project
Rye Development plans to build the most extensive pumped-storage hydroelectric development in the Pacific Northwest. Energy generated from the project will be sent to the grid at the nearby John Day Substation in Oregon to provide power when other renewable…
Water Heroes 2018
Sara Foster, Laura Leigh Brakke, David Stalheim, Eric Hirst, Wendy Harris These five honorees started out as concerned citizens who simply saw an issue and asked what they could do. Their tenacity eventually brought them to the Washington Supreme Court…