Ridenbaugh Press/Water Rights

Low water in both Green Bay and the Fox River, apparently caused by a combination of long-and short-term natural effects, could end up costing the local economy.
Lakes Michigan and Huron are almost at record lows, and the other Great Lakes are down, too.
The Fox River may not be affected by those low lake levels but certainly has been affected by the dry conditions that have contributed to those levels, said Dave Foster of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which controls area dams.
Typically, the Fox would be higher than normal this time of year as the Army Corps of Engineers does its seasonal drawdown of Lake Winnebago, but drought has affected water levels throughout most of Wisconsin, and that likely is contributing to low water in the upper Fox. Recent high winds may also be contributors. The winds can cause a seiche effect (pronounced “saysh”) — a shifting of water mass that lingers even after the winds die down.
The Green Bay area has about 3 inches below normal precipitation, and areas north and south of there are down ever further.
“For every inch of water missing — and we’re down 22 to 24 inches — that 1 inch equals 100 tons that can’t be put on a ship,” Brown County Port Director Dean Haen said. “So ships are carrying only 15,000 to 16,000 tons, when they used to carry from 18,000 to 20,000.

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071204/GPG0101/712040557/1207/GPGnews

Aqua America, Inc. said in December its operating subsidiary in Virginia completed two water system acquisitions to expand the company’s customer base. The combined purchase price for the newly acquired systems is approximately $200,000. The company also announced its Pennsylvania and Illinois subsidiaries have completed the acquisitions of two water companies in their respective states.
In Virginia, the company purchased the assets of the White Oak Estates public water system in Botetourt County, as well as The Green and The Lodge public water systems in Lancaster County. The newly acquired systems currently serve a combined population of approximately 500 people, with a number of new residential developments under construction and/or proposed in the systems’ service areas.
In addition, The Green and The Lodge operations are adjacent to the company’s existing Kingsland water system, and the three systems are integrated into one operation and will be known as the Tartan public water system, named for the golf course on which the community is built.
Aqua Pennsylvania, Inc. acquired the Lakeside Acres Water Company in western Pennsylvania, which serves approximately 525 people living in the Lakeside Acres community in Sadsbury Township, Crawford County for $225,000.
Aqua America Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Nicholas DeBenedictis. said that the Lakeside Acres acquisition will also yield economies of scale as it already shares a pipe interconnect with Aqua Pennsylvania’s nearby Oakland Beach water system, which was acquired in December 2005 and is also operated out of the company’s Shenango Division.
Aqua Pennsylvania plans to invest nearly $80,000 over the next several years to improve the Lakeside Acres water system. The upgrades include process control improvements and new monitoring systems, as well as the installation of a radio frequency-equipped water meter reading system.
Aqua Illinois, Inc. acquired the water system assets of the Village of Sun River Terrace, which serves approximately 600 people in the Village. In addition to the purchase price of $95,000, Aqua Illinois has plans to invest nearly $210,000 in capital improvements over the next five years including improvements to the water tower, the replacement of pipes and fire hydrants, and the installation of new water meters. “Sun Terrace represents another ‘tuck-in’ acquisition as it’s near our Kankakee operations.
Sun Terrace is the second municipal acquisition for Aqua Illinois this year,” said DeBenedictis. Aqua Illinois acquired the Village of Manteno water system, also in the Kankakee area.
Contact:? Aqua America, Inc.?Donna Alston?Director, Communications?610-645-1095?dpalston@aquaamerica.com ?or?Terry Maenza?Senior Communications Specialist?610-645-1175?tmmaenza@aquaamerica.com

Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman and Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning today responded to a letter sent to Ann Bleed, Nebraska Department of Natural Resources Director and Nebraska Republican River Compact Commissioner, by David Barfield, Kansas Republican River Compact Commissioner. The letter makes several demands of Nebraska regarding Nebraskan’s water usage on the Republican River.
“The State of Nebraska agreed to a process with Kansas that will resolve compact accountability,” said Gov. Heineman. “We intend to continue in good faith with that effort. The integrated management plans under consideration by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources and the Natural Resources Districts, plus the tools provided in LB 701 signed into law this year, will allow us to achieve compact compliance going forward. These are important steps that deserve recognition. We will review the letter from Kansas carefully.”
Attorney General Bruning stated, “We appreciate Mr. Barfield’s letter and recognize that this is another step in the process of resolving this dispute. We are hopeful that this dispute can be resolved without involving litigation. However, if Kansas decides to pursue litigation, we are prepared to vigorously defend the interests of Nebraska and our citizens. We are confident that the steps in the proposed integrated management plans will get us where we need to be without the need for the drastic actions suggested by Kansas.”
?Jen Rae Hein, Gov’s Office, 402-429-4701?Ashley Cradduck, Gov’s Office, 402-471-1970?Holley Bolen, Attorney General’s Office, 402-471-3888 Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman Wednesday December 19

Kansas officials in December demanded that Nebraska significantly reduce its use of Republican River water and pay monetary damages for overuse in 2005 and 2006 in violation of a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decree and final settlement stipulation.
In a letter to Ann Bleed, director of the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, Barfield wrote that to get into compliance with the settlement stipulation, Nebraska should immediately shut down wells within 2 and ½ miles of the Republican River and its tributaries and on land in the basin where irrigation started after 2000.
Also in the letter, Barfield pointed out that Kansas’ crop losses in 2005 and 2006 can’t be recovered, so Nebraska should pay damages equal to their state’s gains or Kansas’ losses, whichever is greater.
“Repayment by water appears impractical, so monetary compensation is proposed,” Barfield said.
Nebraska used 82,870 acre-feet of water beyond what it was entitled to in 2005 and 2006. Their overuse from 2003 to 2006 is estimated to be 143,840 acre-feet. One acre-foot is equal to 325,851 gallons.
Kansas and Nebraska entered into a final settlement stipulation in 2002 that called for compliance with its terms on a five-year running average, or a two-year running average in water-short years. The first accounting period for the two-year running average for water-short years is 2005 and 2006.
As a remedy for Nebraska’s violations, Barfield proposes the Supreme Court issue an order finding that Nebraska violated the court’s decree; that Nebraska pay Kansas damages plus interest, attorney fees, costs and any other relief the court deems appropriate; that Nebraska immediately shut down irrigation wells within 2 and ½ miles of the Republican River and its tributaries and on lands in the basin where irrigation began after 2000; and all other actions appropriate for Nebraska to take to comply with the terms of the final settlement stipulation.
Nebraska has 45 days to respond to the proposed remedy and, if agreement cannot be reached, Kansas will submit the matter to the Republican River Compact Administration for dispute resolution.
Kansas first expressed concern in the 1980s that Nebraska was violating the Republican River Compact that defined how waters of the Republican River basin are to be divided among Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas water users. After failed attempts to resolve these concerns, and Nebraska’s continued allowance for more water use, Kansas filed suit in the U.S. Supreme Court. The case settled in 2002.
http://www.ksda.gov/news/ December 19 Contact: ?Lisa Taylor?Public Information Officer? Kansas Department of Agriculture?(785) 296-2653?ltaylor@kda.state.ks.us To read the full text of the letter, visit http://www.ksda.gov/includes/document_center/interstate_water_issues/RRC_Docs/Remedy_NebraskaDecember2007_12_19Final.pdf .

A series of four agreements was authorized December 11 by Metropolitan Water District’s Board of Directors that will clear the way for historic federal guidelines that would for the first time, determine how water shortages are shared along the Colorado River.
With U.S. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne expected to sign the landmark federal conservation and reservoir operations plan for the Colorado River, Metropolitan’s board authorized General Manager Jeff Kightlinger to finalize related documents that will facilitate the plan and would shield California from the impacts of potential water shortages. The agreement also would allow agencies to develop and store new water supplies.
The foundation of the proposed federal plan, which would be in effect through 2026, are guidelines for the Interior Department to declare shortages on the Colorado River and how shortages would be shared among the lower basin states—California, Arizona and Nevada—as Lake Mead storage levels recede.
Under the federal accord, Arizona and Nevada would first realize the initial stepped shortages based on how far Lake Mead storage levels drop. The plan also calls for storage levels in Lake Mead and Powell to be coordinated to manage water more efficiently and lessen the risk of shortages to states in the upper and lower Colorado River basins.
“One of the most creative elements of the Colorado River plan would allow Metropolitan to store in Lake Mead up to 400,000 acre-feet of water produced a year through system efficiency projects for future use,” Kightlinger said. “That water would be generated through our existing conservation programs with the Imperial Irrigation District and the Palo Verde Irrigation District as well as through potential desalination projects.”
In advance of the federal agreement, Metropolitan partnered with the Bureau of Reclamation in a demonstration project that stored 50,000 acre-feet of water in Lake Mead during 2006. Metropolitan plans to recover the stored supplies in 2008 to address the state’s continuing dry conditions. An acre-foot is nearly 326,000 gallons of water, about the amount used by two typical Southern California families in and around their homes in a year.
Along with supplies from Northern California deliveries through the State Water Project, the Colorado River is a primary water source for urban Southern California, serving as the backbone of Metropolitan’s supplies for more than 65 years.
Agreements authorized by Metropolitan’s board would preclude other agencies in the lower basin from claiming water conserved and stored in Lake Mead by another state, and would guarantee delivery of the developed supplies.
Contact:? Metropolitan Water District of Southern California?Bob Muir, 213-217-6930; 213-324-5213, mobile http://www.mwdh2o.com/mwdh2o/pages/news/press_releases/2007-12/Colorado_River.pdf

Governor Sonny Perdue announced December 18 that citizens in 61 drought-stricken Georgia counties reduced their overall water withdrawals by more than 10 percent in November, surpassing the Governor’s goal for water conservation. According to EPD officials, water permit holders as a group conserved approximately 15 percent over last year’s water consumption levels. The goal was to reduce by 230 million gallons of water per day. Water use reports for November 2007 show the affected counties have conserved 348 million gallons per day.
“A 10 percent reduction translates to 230 million gallons a day. Well, I’m here to report that not only did we meet that goal – we exceeded it,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “We have reduced water use by nearly 350 million gallons a day. This is enough water to supply 1.7 million Georgia households every day.”
In October, Governor Perdue directed the Georgia Environmental Protection Division to modify its permits for surface water and groundwater withdrawal, and drinking water systems in the 61 counties included in the Level Four drought designation to require a 10 percent reduction in water withdrawals.
The largest withdrawal of water in the region is by 97 permit holders who account for 98 percent of water use. The permit holders in the region that met the 10 percent reduction goal are: Douglasville-Douglas County Authority, Madison, Toccoa, Villa Rica, Paulding County Water System, Atlanta, Calhoun, Atlanta-Fulton County Water Resources Commission, Roswell, North Fulton County, Newnan, Mount Vernon Mills, Inc., Demorest, Clayton-Rabun County Water & Sewer Authority, Athens-Clarke County Water System, Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority, Chemical Products Corporation, Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources, Oglethorpe Power Corp., Columbus, Covington, Harris County Water System, Chatsworth, Henry County Water Authority, Southern Power Co-Plant Franklin, Cornelia, Catoosa Utility District Authority, Upper Oconee Basin Water Authority, Washington, Cumming, Fayette County, Walker County Water Authority, Adairsville, Mohawk Industries, Inc., Oconee County-Watkinsville, Woodstock, Lafayette, Westpoint Home Inc., Geo Speciality Chemicals, Eagle & Phenix Hydroelectric Project, Inc., Imerys Marble, Inc.-Whitestone Mine, Dalton Utilities, Imerys Marble, Inc.-Marble Hill Mine, Fall Line Hydro Company, Inc., Porterdale Hydroelectric Assoc.
Seventeen more of the largest water users are predicted to meet the goal during the month of December 2007. EPD is requesting information on other permit holders that did not meet the goal. This information request is seen as a first step in addressing compliance issues.
Contact: Office of Communications 404-651-7774 Kevin Chambers, EPD, (404) 656-4713

U.S. Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) applauded Senate passage of legislation (H.R. 3739) that preserves the integrity of the Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act.
“This legislation ensures that the intent of Congress will be carried out, and it provides increased certainty that the settlement on which the Nation and countless other parties worked so tirelessly will be effective,” Kyl said.
The Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act, which was included in the Arizona Water Rights Settlements Act, resolves the water rights claims of the Tohono O’odham Nation in southern Arizona and provides significant funding to enable the Nation to build water infrastructure to meet the needs of its reservation.
Senator Kyl supported the bill, originally introduced in the House of Representatives by Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), and worked hard to ensure that it won swift Senate approval before the end of 2007.
The House approved the bill earlier this week. It now goes to the President to be signed into law.
Andrew Wilder or Ryan Patmintra (202) 224-4521 U.S. Senator Jon Kyl Friday December 14, 2007

Gov. Chris Gregoire announced two historic agreements with Eastern Washington tribes to deliver water from Lake Roosevelt to the Columbia Basin for farmers, cities, and endangered salmon.
Subject to legislative approval, the agreements facilitate the delivery of water from Lake Roosevelt to irrigators of 10,000 acres east of Moses Lake who now rely on a rapidly diminishing ground water aquifer that has been dropping an average of 7 feet per year for decades.
Cities that have been waiting for years for new water supplies will also benefit from the agreements announced by the governor, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, and the Spokane Tribe of Indians. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation manages Lake Roosevelt and is a partner in the agreements.
Stream flows for salmon will be improved under the agreements by the release of additional water during the critical late-summer period on the river.
In exchange for their support of incremental storage releases of up to 132,500 acre feet of water each year from Lake Roosevelt behind Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River, the Colville and Spokane tribes will receive annual payments from Washington state.
The governor will ask the 2008 Legislature to approve the agreements and annual payments of $2.25 million to the Spokane Tribe and $3.8 million (first year) to the Colville Tribes and $3.6 million in subsequent years to the Colvilles.
The tribes will use the payments to mitigate the damage on fish and wildlife, recreation and cultural activities resulting from the release of water from Lake Roosevelt, and for economic development investments to benefit the local economy.
Colville Tribes Chairman Mike Marchand said the agreement represents the first time the State of Washington approached the Colville Tribes in advance of a major water resources initiative to address impacts to the tribes.
Gov. Gregoire said the benefits to water users long in need of new water supplies in as many as six counties far outweigh the costs of the agreements.
Loss of irrigation water in the area now served by the rapidly depleting Odessa aquifer could cost the agricultural region $600 million a year in revenue and the elimination of 7,500 jobs.
Water users who will benefit from the agreements include: Irrigators of 10,000 acres of land in the Odessa Ground Water Management Subarea. They will receive surface water from Lake Roosevelt and end their reliance on the rapidly depleting aquifer; as many as 379 holders of water rights that can be stopped during droughts, most of whom are farmers who use the water to irrigate their crops. The addition of 33,000 acre feet of water for use in dry years will create a “drought insurance” program for these water users. With this new water, they will be less at risk of having their water supply interrupted or cut off in drought years; many of the 128 applicants for municipal and industrial water rights who will receive water under the agreements; 27,500 acre feet of water will be available each year and an additional 17,000 acre feet will be available during critical drought years to increase water held in-stream to benefit endangered salmon and improve the health of the Columbia River; for local governments around Lake Roosevelt, Gov. Gregoire is asking the Legislature to provide $2 million to address priority water issues.
New water permits may be issued as early as the spring of 2008. The East Columbia Basin Irrigation District will work with local farmers to deliver the new water to lands that currently irrigate with ground water. Cities and industrial water users with pending permit applications for new water may have to finance the installation of necessary delivery infrastructure.
Washington State Department of Ecology Monday December 17

Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne on December 13 signed an historic decision that will implement innovative strategies for management of the Colorado River, reflecting “a remarkable consensus” among stakeholders about sharing water during the current drought and charting a water management course for the future.
“This is the most important agreement among the seven basin states since the original Colorado River Compact of 1922,” said Kempthorne, noting that his decision memorializes “a remarkable consensus” not only to solve current problems but also to prepare ahead of time for future droughts or surpluses rather than resorting to disruptive litigation.
Signed at the Colorado River Water Users Association’s annual meeting in Las Vegas, the Record of Decision activates a legal agreement among the basin states that contains a provision in which they firmly commit to address future controversies on the river through consultation and negotiation before initiating any litigation.
The decision implements new, interim operational guidelines to meet the challenges of the current eight-year drought in the basin and, potentially, low-water conditions caused by continued drought or other causes in the future. The rules, which take effect immediately, will be in place through 2026.
The Secretary noted that representatives at a recent World Bank meeting expressed an interest in innovations contained in the plan.
The Record of Decision adopts four key elements of river management: First, the new guidelines establish rules for shortages—specifying who will take reductions and when they take them. This is essential for prudent water planning in times of drought; second, the new operational rules for Lake Powell and Lake Mead will allow these two massive reservoirs to rise and fall in tandem, thereby better sharing the risk of drought; third, the new guidelines establish rules for surpluses, so that if the basin is blessed with ample runoff, the Department of the Interior will have rules in place to distribute the extra water; fourth, the new rules will address the ongoing drought by encouraging new initiatives for water conservation.
“I am particularly impressed by the innovative approaches you have taken to conserve water, especially the construction project known as Drop 2,” the Secretary told state leaders. The Drop 2 project will be located in California, but it is being paid for by Nevada. It will create an important reservoir to conserve additional water for Nevada’s use over the next two decades. After that, the additional water will benefit all water users in the lower basin states.
Other conservation measures in the guidelines include an agreement allowing water users to obtain future credit for conserving water and leaving it in Lake Mead. The Record of Decision also sets up a framework to allow cities to contract with willing farmers to temporarily fallow fields in dry years while respecting the basin’s agricultural heritage.
Specifics in the guidelines include the elevations in Lake Mead at which the Secretary would declare shortages in the Lower Basin, as well as what those shortages would be. The guidelines also specify the conditions under which Lakes Powell and Mead will be operated, with the intent of operating the reservoirs to avoid the risk of water curtailments in the Upper Basin and minimize shortages in the Lower Basin. The guidelines provide a mechanism that encourages water conservation in Lake Mead in the Lower Basin to minimize the likelihood and severity of potential future shortages; and modify and extend the Interim Surplus Guidelines, implemented in 2001, through 2026
A full copy of the Record of Decision is available at www.usbr.gov/lc/region/programs/strategies.html, under “New Info.”
Contact:?Kip White 202-271-8577?or Robert Walsh 702-591-0029?(Reclamation)?Chris Paolino or Joan Moody 202-208-6416?(Office of the Secretary)

In a ruling released December 11 Lake County Common Pleas Court Judge Eugene Lucci says that the boundary between public and private land moves with the tides.
As Great Lakes water levels drop and the debate over property rights versus public access heats up, the ruling has sweeping implications for Lake Erie beach walkers as well as fishermen, waterfowl hunters, and birders who want to access the shoreline.
It defines the “water’s edge”—not the historic high-watermark—as the property boundary.
The ruling marks the latest development in a class action lawsuit filed in 2004 on behalf of Lake Erie’s 15,500 shoreline property owners in Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Erie, Lorain, Cuyahoga, Lake, and Ashtabula counties. The lawsuit accused state officials of illegally taking private land under the guise of protecting the public’s right to access Lake Erie.
Former Gov. Bob Taft’s administration argued that the dividing line was the shoreline’s historic “ordinary high watermark,” a policy based on the Supreme Court’s public trust doctrine, which Ohio and Michigan adopted decades ago. However, on July 13 Gov. Ted Strickland said he would yield to whatever is outlined in property deeds while waiting for courts to sort out the dispute.
Judge Lucci’s ruling states that Ohio “has ownership in trust of the waters of Lake Erie and the land beneath those waters landward as far as the water’s edge, but no farther.”
Public interest groups claim the decision is disappointing and confusing because it suggests the boundary changes with wave action, and that it basically privatizes the Lake Erie shoreline. They predict the ruling will be used to benefit new development rights along the shore without any state oversight. The groups cited a 2005 Michigan Supreme Court ruling which asserted the public trust went up to the high watermark.
Private property rights advocates claimed the ruling was well reasoned and researched, and heralded it as a move in the direction of putting an end to government takings.
Reference: The Toledo Blade: http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071212/NEWS02/712120423