Oregon Rivers Need Your Help!
Act now to tell state leaders that you value water for fish, wildlife and recreation as well as for farms and cities. Submit comments today for healthy rivers tomorrow.
Make your voice heard to shape how Oregon manages water! To help gather information about what is important to Oregonians, the state is holding open house sessions about the new statewide strategy for managing water resources. The first open house, on Wednesday, March 31st, is the only one in the Portland metro area. Ten more will follow throughout the state.
This is the first time Oregon has ever developed a formalized strategy for managing the state’s water resources. The Strategy will govern how Oregon meets both instream (fish and wildlife, recreation, and water quality) and out of stream (agricultural, municipal, and industrial) water needs in the future.
The strategy is a joint effort of the Oregon Water Resources Department, Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Fish and Wildlife.
They need to hear from you that protecting and restoring our rivers and streams should be high on the list of priorities.
You are invited to attend one of 11 open house sessions, or to submit written comments on the Integrated Water Resources Strategy.
Key talking points:
- All water diversions should be measured. Many water users do not measure how much they use. Unless the State knows how much water is being diverted from waterways, and when, it cannot adequately manage our water resources.
- The State should invest in conservation strategies before investing in expensive new water storage projects.
- Oregon’s rivers would benefit from better integration of water quality protection, water quantity management, and fish and wildlife preservation. The current system regulates each issue separately, missing the big picture of watershed health.
- Hundreds of streams in Oregon are at risk from running dry; they are not protected by instream water rights. All streams should have instream water rights to ensure the minimum flows needed to support fish and wildlife.
- The State needs to aggressively analyze requests for water rights permits, and water demand forecasts should be required to factor in conservation measures. Forecasts are often unrealistically high, and the State should stop issuing speculative water rights.
