Prior to Euro-American development, there was one huge salmon run with the largest number of salmon returning during the summer.   Unfortunately, water development projects on the tributaries of the Yakima, as well as the mainstem, have eliminated those runs that migrated during the summer, or utilized habitat in areas that are now unsuitable because of floodplain habitat alterations or water temperature.  Thus we are left with species and runs whose migration timing and habitat areas are compatible with our water development.  Fall Chinook migrate, spawn, and rear in the Lower Yakima River during times of the year when water temperatures are not excessive.  Spring Chinook avoid high water temperatures by migrating through the lower river during the spring, and spawn and rear in the upper watershed where water temperatures are not normally a concern.  Steelhead hold in the Columbia River and do not enter the Yakima River until water temperatures have moderated in the early fall, and complete their migration in the spring.

Historic Fish Runs in the Yakima Basin Video

Each species and run has different habitat requirements.  Spring Chinook spawn in smaller streams, such as the upper Yakima, Cle Elum, Teanaway, American and Little Naches rivers.  Juvenile spring Chinook spend 1 year in freshwater and then migrate to the ocean.  Fall Chinook are big river spawners; the Columbia and Snake rivers and the lower Yakima River.  Juvenile fall Chinook only rear in fresh water for approximately 3 months and then go to the ocean; which means their juveniles migrate during late spring and early summer, thus avoiding high water temperatures in most years.  Summer Chinook are in between, literally; they return during the summer and exhibit life cycles similar to both fall Chinook and spring Chinook.  Summer Chinook spawn primarily in the Wenatchee and Okanogan Rivers in Washington, as well as the Snake River drainage in Idaho.  Washington juvenile summer Chinook migrate to the ocean during the spring and summer of their first year, much as fall Chinook, while Snake River summer Chinook behave more like spring Chinook, in that the juveniles rear in freshwater for a full year before migrating to the ocean.  

Historically, The Chinook run in the Columbia River was one long silvery parade, beginning in February in the Lower Columbia River and lasting into November.  Summer Chinook constituted the majority of this enormous bounty.  Now we have 3 much-reduced humps on the graph representing small numbers of salmon in the spring, summer, and fall migration periods, instead of one big continuous curve.

Summer Chinook, along with sockeye and coho are extinct in the Yakima Basin.  The Yakama Nation is in the process of re-introducing coho and sockeye.  In 2010, approximately 13,000 Spring Chinook were counted at Prosser Dam, along with several thousand fall Chinook, coho, and steelhead.

A female Salmon digs a redd, or nest, in the gravel in the bottom of the river to deposit her eggs.  When she is ready to lay a portion of her eggs, she releases pheromones to attract the male.  Once the male joins her in the bottom of the redd, she releases some of her eggs and the male fertilizes them.  The male then departs, while the female digs on the upstream edge of the redd, which covers the eggs while she excavates a new depression.  When this depression is ready, she releases pheromones and repeats the process of laying eggs while a male fertilizes them.  Each female will engage in 5-7 egg-laying episodes before she has deposited all of her 3000 to 5000 eggs in the gravel.  When she completes her task, all of the eggs will be covered by 12-16 inches of gravel, which provides protection for the eggs.  After spawning is completed, all Pacific salmon die; this final sacrifice provides essential nutrients for the food chain that will support the juvenile salmon during their time rearing in freshwater.

 
Life Cycle of Spring Chinook on the Cle Elum River Video

In December, the eggs hatch.  The alevins, or sac fry, stay in the gravel and gradually absorb the orange-colored yoke sac.  The fry remain in the gravel through the winter and into the spring.  In May, when the water is warming up and food production in the river accelerates, the yolk is completely absorbed and the fry have to emerge from the gravel and begin to feed on their own.  Spring Chinook spend a full year in freshwater before migrating to the ocean the following spring.  Instead of swimming to the ocean, they ride the high water, or “freshet”, created by the melting mountain snow-pack.   This high water is equivalent to a human catching a bus and riding to the mouth of the Columbia River. 

 
"The Bus" Catching the High Water Video

Research results indicate that the survival of spring Chinook in the Yakima Basin from the egg phase to migrating to the ocean as smolts averages approximately 5%.  When they return, the surviving adults will spawn in the same area of the river that they themselves came from.  The ability to locate their natal gravel is one of the marvels of the natural world.

Return to Natural Production Video

The best basin to do significant restoration of natural production in the Columbia River system is in the Yakima Basin.  To be sure, we have challenges in water management and flows. But, if we provide a large quantity of water in the Yakima River basin dedicated to salmon restoration, there is no reason we can’t produce greatly increased salmon runs.  There is a lot of potential in this Basin but we must have a vision as big as the potential.

Yakima Basin Low Flow Problems Video 

We can’t maintain agriculture at the current acreage, provide that acreage with sufficient water during droughts, and produce greatly increased salmon runs with the water supplies from the Yakima Basin.  There is only one place to get the large quantity of water to provide for both irrigation and fish restoration, and that is from the Columbia River.

 
How to Save Agriculture and Fish in the Yakima Basin Video

Bring water out of the Columbia River and put it in the Roza and Sunnyside canals and then unhook those districts from the Yakima River.  The Yakima Basin water supply formally used by those two districts could then be utilized to support salmon restoration throughout the basin, while still providing the water needed for irrigation from the Columbia River.  In addition, we need to build passage at the storage dams, and purchase, protect, and restore floodplain and riparian habitat.  Central to this restoration strategy is the restoration of the 100 miles of the lower Yakima River.

We had a vision 30 years ago; what was once only a vision, a dream, is not reality. We can go see this new reality, we can stand on it; most importantly, we can watch it spawn in the river. We have constructed fish ladders and fish screens throughout the Yakima Basin; we have modified water management to protect redds and aid migrating fish.  

Yakima Basin Flip Flop Process for Fish Video

We now need to move on to a new vision, so that 30 years from now that, too, will be reality.  That vision is a secure and prosperous agricultural economy, and vastly increased salmon runs in the Yakima Basin.  That vision requires new solutions and bold approaches.  The idea of pumping water out of the Columbia River is not new.  It is already being done on the Umatilla River, and planning to implement a similar project in the Walla Walla River is well underway.  The Umatilla Project has been successful in supplying the irrigation water needed while providing water for fish.  In addition,  pumping out of the Columbia River is the probable solution to declining groundwater in the Odessa area.

 
Pattern of Water Exchange in River Basins Video

Twenty years from now climate change is really going to be a driver of our water supply in the Yakima Basin.  It will affect either the timing or total amount, or both.  The water exchange project with the Columbia River would allow us to meet this unprecedented challenge without causing economic and social upheaval. 

 
Climate Change Video

                                                                                                      Sockeye above Lake Cle Elum Video
The choice is ours: Boldly prepare for the future, or be prisoners of the future.  Control our own destiny, or have our destiny determined by outside forces and decisions.

By Bob Tuck

Yakima Herald-Republic Editorial Board

This editorial appears in the Yakima Herald-Republic on April 12, 2009.

Study stymies new storage, but need for water remains

It looks like those involved in the search for water enhancement in the Yakima River Basin have finally agreed on one thing: We don't need another endless cycle of studies.

"Since the 1980s there's been no end to this stuff," said Jerry Kelso, area manager for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in Yakima. "There needs to be an end."

We couldn't agree more.

Kelso's pronouncement came a week ago after the bureau ended a five-year, $18 million study that concluded none of the suggested new water storage projects -- from a tiny reservoir off the Yakima River to the behemoth Black Rock reservoir east of Yakima -- are worth pursuing.

However, that doesn't mean the Yakima River Basin has an adequate water supply to meet the needs of irrigators, cities and migrating fish -- now or into the future. Far from it. Water experts predict worsening conditions due to climate changes will lead to increased threats of drought. Within the next 50 years, the region could be experiencing eight drought years out of every 10.

Right now, California is facing critical water shortages with farmers taking more than 1 million acres out of production. For the Yakima Valley, that type of flexibility is not possible. Tree fruits dominate our ag crops. When a tree dies in a drought, a return to production takes years, not to mention vast new expenditures. The result would be economic chaos.

Though the bureau has said the options for new storage are not worth pursuing, that also doesn't mean the debate has ended, especially with respect to Black Rock. The bureau essentially gave the proposed 1.6 million-acre-foot reservoir a stay of execution. The controversial project has at least as many pluses going for it as it does minuses.

Critics say its ballooning estimated cost of construction, now projected at $4 billion-plus, is far too much and that its return on each dollar invested of 13 cents is way too low. Then there's the ticking time bomb of predicted seepage, which could speed pollutants to the Columbia River from the Hanford nuclear reservation to the east.

Proponents counter by saying the bureau's analysis of costs is flawed and does not calculate the value of such amenities as recreation. They also say Black Rock is the only proposal on the table that satisfies the three-pronged mandate handed down by Congress when it authorized studies for the Yakima basin: water for fish, water for people and water for irrigators.

The project would draw water from the Columbia River when it has excess water, pump it uphill and store it behind a 600 foot-high dam about 30 miles east of Yakima. That would allow greater flows in the Yakima River by providing irrigation water for area crops.

But added storage is only one aspect of a realistic solution. Better water conservation and fish habitat, along with improved fish passage at dams in the upper reaches of the Yakima River, must also be in play.

Bringing all of these elements together will be the goal of one last study by the state Department of Ecology. The department is attempting to determine the best alternative to meet the most needs.

Then comes the crucial effort to get all of the competing interests in the basin -- from the Yakama Nation to junior water rights holders within the Roza Irrigation District -- at the same table with the sole purpose of getting a thumbs up on a solution.

That's a tall order, but it is not out of reach.

Certainly those leading the Yakima Basin Storage Alliance have done the right thing at this time by agreeing to step back after years of guiding the discussion. The alliance is looking to the elected commissioners from the three-county basin to shoulder that new leadership role. This move should entice the Yakama Nation to join in the discussion -- which is critical if any legislation is to eventually be presented to Congress for funding.

We suggest taking one additional step. Why not invite Gov. Chris Gregoire and get her involved in a leadership role? The governor once oversaw the Department of Ecology and served as the state's attorney general as well. You couldn't ask for better qualifications, and they will be needed to get agreement from such a diverse group of water users, not to mention environmentalists.

Doing nothing is not an option. The future of the Yakima Valley demands action. And the sooner the better.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Barbara Serrano, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.

Study underestimates value, urgency of Black Rock Reservoir project.pdf

Response to the January, 2008 Draft Planning Report/Environmental Impact Statement of the Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study by the Bureau of Reclamation and Washington State Department of Ecology

Washington State Realtors Make Huge Investment in Black Rock

Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study Draft Planning Report/Environmental Impact Statement
     http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/storage_study/reports/eis/draft-pr-eis.pdf

Yakama Nation Review Article
     Solving the Water Shortage in the Yakima Basin

HISTORY

It all started in the middle 1800’s when Chief Kamakin near the Ahtanam Mission diverted some water from Ahtanam creek into a ditch to irrigate a small patch of corn.  Then starting in the 1860’s pioneers came into the Yakima Basin and began to put water on this arid land.  The magic of water applied to this rich soil then produced magnificent crops that in time made the Yakima Basin Crop Production famous and its people prosperous. 

It did not take long for our Government to realize that Infrastructure would be the key to causing success for the western movement of people towards this new land.  Transportation was the first step with new railroads established early to transport people, needed supplies, and produce to markets throughout the United States.

Here in the Yakima Basin the Railroad Companies quickly recognized that New Water Delivery systems would be required to open this new land to irrigation.  They brought Walter Granger into the Valley to explore the possibilities.  He got off a train in Yakima then rode a cayoose into the center of the Yakima Valley stopping on top of Cherry Hill, also know as Snipes Mountain, got off his Cayoose and looked north.  He studied the area, then reached down and picked up a sagebrush stick and drew two lines in the soil.  The bottom line represented what he called the low-line canal and the other line he called the high-line canal.  Today the low line is the Sunnyside Canal, and the highline is the Roza Canel both running parallel through the Yakima Valley just as Walter Granger envisioned back in the late 1800’s.  In fact he had 44 miles of the Sunnyside Canal built within five years with water available in the Sunnyside Canal to begin to irrigate this new land.

Our forefathers had all the plans laid out for new canal and reservoir systems to store and deliver water by 1908.  They had all six reservoirs that exist today built and in place by 1933.  The Yakima project consists of 6 storage dams and reservoirs to supplement the normal runoff from snowmelt in the Yakima River Basin.  The reservoirs are Bumping Lake (33,700 a/f), Clear Lake (5,300 a/f), Rimrock (Tieton) Lake (198,00 a/f), Kachess Lake (239,000 a/f), Keechelus Lake (157,900 a/f), and Lake Cle Elum (436,900 a/f).  As a result of a petition dated January 28, 1903, from citizens of Yakima County to the Secretary of the Interior presenting the very favorable opportunities for construction and development, investigations were initiated which led to the beginning of construction by the Reclamation Service.  The Sunnyside and Tieton Units were approved for construction in 1905.  Early in 1906, investigation of storage sites was initiated, including Bumping Lake, McAllister Meadows (Tieton Reservoir), and Cle Elum, Kachess, and Keechelus Lakes.

Construction of the Sunnyside Diversion Dam was completed October 17, 1907.  Development of the project progressed with the construction of Tieton Diversion Dam in 1908, Bumping Lake Dam in 1910, Kachess Dam in 1912, Clear Creek Dam in 1914, Keechelus Dam in 1917, Tieton (storage Dam in 1925, Easton Dam in 1929, Prosser Powerplant in 1932, Cle Elum Dam in 1933, Roza Diversion Dam in 1939, and Chandler Powerplant in 1956.  Distribution systems were built concurrently with the storage and diversion facilities.  Prosser Powerplant was retired in 1955, and Roza Powerplant was completed in 1958.

Construction of Kennewick Division facilities began in January 1953, and was completed in January 1958.  Cascade Irrigation District rehabilitation and betterment work began in February 1974 and was completed in May 1975.

Construction of the Phase I fish ladders and fish screens at the larger diversion dams and diversion canals began in 1984 and were completed in 1989.  Implementation of Phase II water conservation and other measures are pending completion of funding prerequisites.

The six reservoirs store 1,070,700 acre-feet of water for use in the Yakima Basin.  The Yakima Basin agriculture industry has entitlements of approximately 2,100,000 a/f of water annually with additional water needed for fisheries and municipal use.

One could say today that our forefathers knew what they had to do and went about accomplishing the construction of Infrastructure that still serves us today.

The whole Yakima Basin water delivery system was taken over and operated by the Bureau of Reclamation since shortly after the Reclamation Act came into being in the early 1900’s.  The Yakima Basin Irrigation Project was developed with stored water constituting less than half the water necessary to fulfill the entitlements authorized.  With approximately 1 million acre-feet of water in storage and 2.1 million acre-feet authorized, 1.1 million acre-feet must be provided from snow pack in the Cascades.  Over the years the snow pack has not met its requirement so fish, instream flow, agriculture, and municipal and industrial growth suffer.

ENVIRONMENT

Yakima Basin Storage Alliance's Criteria Committee determined the following to be the benefits of the Black Rock Reservoir to the environment:

Instream flows which need to be quantified based on operations of the reservoir.

Normative river senario which needs definition as to baseline criteria.

Improved water quality with standards developed to comply with applicable statutes.

Restoration of wetlands based on reasonable goals.

Improved flood control to protect fish and wildlife habitat.

Improved stability for river shoreline.

Improved salmon and resident fish and wildlife populations, including survival at all life stages.

Improved fish passage.

Improved groundwater supply.

Improved water management for Yakima and Columbia Rivers.

Lower temperatures in the Yakima River.

Provide alternative power source for peak power demands on Columbia River to preserve water for salmon in the Mid-Columbia during the summer migration.

Improved ability for re-introduction of historical salmon runs

SALMON RECOVERY

            Benefits developed in the Storage Study indicate that Black Rock Reservoir creates a surplus of approximately 600 thousand acre/feet of water in the Yakima River for fish and instream flow, but it only projects an increase of 69.0001 fish coming back to the river and its tributaries to spawn based on modeling for Black Rock. Historically salmon and steelhead runs have declined from an estimated 800,000 fish to less than 5% of this number.  With Roza and Sunnyside Irrigation Projects served with water from the Columbia River, the reaches of the Yakima River that have been de-watered can be partially restored and passage over the existing reservoirs can be created.2

            With the excess water available in the Yakima River managed by the Yakama Nation, the State and Federal Departments of Fisheries and the Bureau of Reclamation, habitat along the river can be rewatered opening miles of new habitat.  Operations that exist now such as the flip flop and the less than normal flow in the upper Yakima and Cle Elum Rivers can be eliminated.

            With the additional water remaining in the five existing reservoirs, fish ladders could become a reality, opening many miles of habitat in the upper Cle Elum, Wapatus, Cooper and other rivers and streams that have been inaccessible for years.

            The Yakama Nation, using the Cle Elum Supplementation and Research Facility, can restore the Sockeye and Coho runs in the Yakima Basin, Sockeye Salmon can be reestablished in Lake Cle Elum.  The historical level of Sockeye Salmon production in the original Lake Cle Elum is estimated to be about 31,125 fish (Yakama Nation et al. 1990).  Based upon the current lake which is larger with a much greater surface area the estimate can be expanded to 58,783 adults.3

            The present worth calculations developed by the BOR in the Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study: Plan Formulation Phase estimates an additional 69,000 coming back to the Yakima Basin.  With the additional habitat, water managed to create a more normal flow in the Yakima River (no more gimmicks), passage into and above the existing reservoirs, and the elimination of water short years, YBSA through their research believes a minimum of 200,000 fish will return.

            Using the value per fish4 used in the BOR study for fishery use and nonuse the additional fish returning will have values of at least $100 million for fishery use and approximately $2.6 billion fishery nonuse.

1. Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study, Washington, November 2006; pg 59.
2. As reported in the Reaches Project by Jack A. Stanford et al. October 4, 2002;
3. Draft 36 for core team review 30 Nov. 2006, summary of smolt production in the Cle Elum Lake.
4. Valuing multiple programs to improve fish population for the Washington State Department of Ecology by Gardner M. Brown Jr. et al., April 1999.

Note: Modeling is only as accurate as the design of the model and the accuracy of the input by the operator.

AGRICULTURE

            The BOR used the Principle and Guidelines (P & G) analysis of National Economic Development (NED) agricultural benefits which identifies the change in net farm income associated with the irrigation water supply available related to a change in crop acreage while maintaining the same cropping patterns.  Irrigation benefits are accounted for in drought years when proration is less than seventy percent.  BOR chose to use a 23 year period 1981 through 2003 to determine benefits and used the years 1993, 1994, & 2001 to determine irrigation benefits.1

            The BOR did not include that from 1977 to 2002 there have been 7 years with prorated water less than seventy percent.2  In addition to those years, in 2005 prorated water was again reduced to below the 70% threshold.  Climate change in the Yakima River Basin, a snow meltdown basin, could cause peak stream flows to arrive earlier and reduce summer stream flows.  One study3 projects global warming would decrease the amount of water available for irrigation in the Yakima River Basin by an average of 20% to 40% in a typical year by 2050.

            The calculations presented in the Yakima River Basin Water Storage Study show the annual equivalent and present worth of irrigation benefits over the 100 year period of analysis is $86,600,000.

            The economic impact of the 2001 drought to the Yakima Basin irrigated agriculture for all three counties was estimated to be $130,434,500.  The agriculture revenue was entered into the IMPLAN models shows that the $130 million reduction in agriculture revenues contributed to a loss of $196 million in total economic output within the Yakima River Basin region.  The loss of $130 million in agriculture revenue within the Yakima Basin resulted in a total loss of nearly $226 million in total output within Washington State and a temporary loss of 4,900 jobs in 2001.4

            Using an average loss of $200 million each year over 7 out of the 25 year period when proration was less than 70% the loss would be approximately $1.4 billion dollars to our region and the state, or an average of $56 million/year.  The NPV of which for 100 years is $930,000,000 at a 6% discount rate.

1. The Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study, Washington Nov. 2006 pg 58.
2. The Economic Impacts of Improved Water Supply Reliability in the Yakima River Basin by Northwest/Economic Associates, March 23, 2004, pg 44.
3. Climate Change and Adaptation in Irrigated Agriculture – A Case Study of the Yakima River.  Prepared by Joe Casola, Amy Stover and the Climate Impacts Group (CIG) at the University of Washington, October 2005.
4. The Economic Impacts of Improved Water Supply Reliability in the Yakima River Basin by Northwest/Economic Associates, March 23, 2004, pg 82 & 83.

“Questions and Answers Concerning Economic Impacts of Droughts in Washington State” found at www.washingtondrought.org/

NW wind power could double Seattle Times May 6 2011.pdf

Oregonian BPA Wind Integration.pdf

RECREATION STUDY

SUMMARY

Based on the cash flow analyses and reduced to NPV, the revenues from the various components of the project can bring total current values of:
    
     Travel and Recreation                       $1.280 billion
     Residential & Resort Development    $1.977 billion
     Commercial Development                 $0.147 billion
     Total NPV of Revenue Stream     $3.404 billion
Additional Benefits
     Energy Sales                                     $0.412 billion
     Total Benefits                                 $3.816 billion

The Black Rock Project could help extend the life of certain congested transmission paths by acting as a strategic, centrally located dispatchable “load” when there is too much generation East of the Cascades trying to go to the West side. Installing P-G facilities in the Black Rock Project would add dynamic control benefits to the transmission system -- much like a shock absorber does for an automobile.

The Project could store excess wind power for economic reasons as well as transmission system benefits when wind storms arrive during low market price periods. These low market price periods tend to be when the Columbia River hydroelectric generators are at full capacity during the Spring Runoff and transmission East to West is congested. Once stored, this low value wind power could be released from storage during high market price periods in late summer when transmission is likely to be more available.

As a P-G project, it could also add critical new capacity to the Northwest during extreme peak load conditions in the same manner that Grand Coulee’s P/G system presently does.

In summary, the Black Rock Storage Project’s ability to generate power benefits needs a second look as a solution to many of the Northwest’s looming power system problems. It would be especially useful as a means to integrate the new wind power potential near it in Eastern Washington into the Northwest’s power grid, and the same time protect the grid’s reliability.

For the complete Energy Study click on the link below.
EVALUATION OF THE BLACK ROCK PROJECT’s PUMPED STORAGE POWER COSTS AND BENEFITS
                                  Created by Energy Northwest Author: Larry Felton

Columbia Basin Renewable Energy Integration and Storage Project

But now, YBSA has a viable new idea.  In Europe, they have said for centuries, “when the wind blows, pump water uphill”.  So, when those thousands of wind turbines built along the Columbia River start to turn, all too often Bonneville Power feather the props because the power can’t be integrated into the northwest grid or shipped to California markets.  This is a tragic loss of renewable energy and the money it generates.  The time-honored answer: pump water uphill when power is virtually free, and run it back downhill when the energy can be sold.  It is that simple, but complex to put in place.

We have the blueprint, and it could be called the “Columbia Basin Renewable Energy Integration and Storage Project”.  YBSA has hired Jim Waldo, a very successful water attorney with a great record of “putting things together” to organize a number of interested parties in such a project, big players who provide electricity for the northwest, including the new wind power industry.  Bonneville has given itself a year to find an answer to the wind integration dilemma which has them currently forced to “environmental redispatch” some wind energy by just plain turning it off, and the use of pumped storage is next on their option list for investment.  The same energy balancing opportunity could be extremely useful for hydro power which now just flows to the sea once it leaves Grand Coulee.

At YBSA, we see ourselves as “coordinators” of this effort at this early stage, and we intend to share the prospects with all interested parties, including the state/federal Integrated Work Group that has advanced a lot of effort on fish and wildlife habitat, fish passage, water management, water banking, and quality.  Their work on water supply is familiar ground that failed decades ago in Congress, and now faces the additional hurdles of the Endangered Species Act and no federal money, no earmarks.

The amount of pumped storage we need to solve the water supply woes of the Yakima Basin is comparatively small, and we have several years head start with the completed multi-million study of the irrigation use of Columbia River surplus.  Pumped storage for energy storage works just as it does for irrigation except that we run stored water to supply the Roza and Sunnyside Canal systems, and the energy folks run it back into the Columbia when electricity is needed.

In other words, we get the benefits of an inter-basin transfer of water to meet our three goals: water for fish, water for people, and water for jobs . . . and the cost of doing this is reduced dramatically by partnering with folks who need the same investment.

A Pumped Storage Project Benefits the Region and the Yakima Basin

The Pumped Storage project described in the Yakima River Basin Water Storage Feasibility Study identifies the necessary water to address the needs for out of stream use (irrigation), instream use (fish), residential and industrial growth, and to recharge ground water in the basin.  The inter-basin exchange of water from the Columbia River to the Yakima Basin to be used for irrigation purposes leaves water in the Yakima River which would return to a more normal flow.  The water drawn from the Columbia would return to the Columbia River at the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima Rivers bucket for bucket.

The Pumped Storage Project would be designed to operate as the Umatilla Basin Project has been to the delight of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the irrigation districts, and the Federal and State Department of Fish and Wildlife.  The rewatering of the Umatilla Basin is a success story that can be duplicated in the Yakima River Basin.  See the following links about the Umatilla Basin.

The following links provide information about the Umatilla River Restoration.

The Resurrection of a River:
Re-watering the Umatilla Basin

Habitat History

BOR Umatilla Basin Project
The original Umatilla Project furnishes a full supply of irrigation water to over 17,000 acres and a supplemental supply to approximately 13,000 acres. These lands, located in north-central Oregon, are divided into three divisions. The East Division is the Hermiston Irrigation District, the West Division is the West Extension Irrigation District, and the South Division includes the Stanfield and Westland Irrigation Districts. In addition, there are approximately 3,800 acres not included in an irrigation district that are provided either a full or supplemental water supply from McKay Reservoir under individual storage contracts.

Project features of the East Division are Cold Springs Dam and Reservoir, Feed Canal Diversion Dam and Canal, and Maxwell Diversion Dam and Canal. Three Mile Falls Diversion Dam on the Umatilla River and the 27-mile West Extension Main Canal are the principal features of the West Division. McKay Dam and Reservoir are the only features in the South Division.

Activities were initiated in the mid-1980s under the Umatilla Basin Project to restore instream flows for anadromous fish and allow established irrigation to continue. These activities resulted in Umatilla River channel modifications, construction of fish ladders, fish traps and fish screens, and the construction of water exchange facilities (Phase I and Phase II) to deliver irrigation replacement water from the Columbia River.

Umatilla River Vision

The following information is from the

Salmon Success in the Umatilla River!

 

For nearly 70 years, salmon were not present in the Umatilla River. Irrigation diversions and habitat damage extinguished them in the early 1900s. Today, salmon are once again living in the Umatilla River and making a remarkable comeback, thanks to a cooperative effort led by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

Salmon runs were revived in the Umatilla River while also protecting the local irrigated agriculture economy.

The Umatilla Basin is one of the few success stories in the Columbia Basin and it’s because local people, including Indians and irrigators, worked together to make this miracle possible.

 

The Story...

In the early part of the 20th century, the Bureau of Reclamation built a large irrigation project in the Umatilla River Basin. The irrigated agriculture economy was born and flourished, but the salmon were driven into extinction.

The project dewatered the Umatilla River several months out of the year, and its dams blocked fish passage. A conflict was created between tribes, who relied on salmon for subsistence, economic, religious, and cultural reasons, and the irrigation farmers who were benefiting from the use of Umatilla River water.

The Confederated Tribes and the irrigation districts, however, recognized that the conflict they faced was not of their own creation. The federal government had promised the same water to the irrigators that it had a responsibility to protect for the Tribes under the Treaty of 1855.

The federal government had pitted the Tribes and irrigators against one another. But instead of devoting time and resources to fighting one another, the Tribes and irrigators decided to focus on creating a solution together.

The solution was the Umatilla Basin Project. The project was developed by the Confederated Tribes, irrigators, Bureau of Reclamation, Bonneville Power Administration, Oregon Water Resources Department and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Former Senator Mark Hatfield played an important role in helping the parties negotiate this solution, and in 1988 introduced legislation to authorize the project.

The Umatilla Basin Project is a bucket-for-bucket water exchange that delivers Columbia River water to the participating irrigation districts. In exchange, the irrigation districts leave water in the Umatilla River for migrating fish. Every bucket of water taken from the Columbia River eventually flows back to it from the Umatilla River.

Other projects in this comprehensive effort include fish passage improvements (such as ladders and screens), stream habitat enhancement, hatchery actions, and research to measure success.

For thirteen of the last sixteen years (in 2005), enough adult spring chinook have returned to the Umatilla River to provide a spring chinook fishing season for both Indian and non-Indian fishers. The tribe realizes that fisheries resources will probably never be as abundant as they were just 100 years ago, and there is still a long way to go to reach population goals for the basin. But they also know that extinct salmon runs or a handful of federally listed populations is not an option, and neither is devastation of local economies.

The Umatilla Basin Project serves as a model for how people can resolve water and salmon conflicts relatively peacefully and without spending time and money in the courtroom. It provides a tried and true method for resolving conflicts that are the result of historic practices that failed to recognize Treaty reserved rights. Instead of years of divisive litigation, the Umatilla Basin approach has been to devote the parties’ efforts and resources to creating a solution that works for all the affected interests.

Antone Minthorn, Chairman of the CTUIR Board of Trustees, has been a driving force behind these cooperative solutions. He summarized why he believes the Umatilla Basin Project has been so successful:

“Our tribal philosophy has been to negotiate rather than litigate. If we have to, we will litigate to protect our treaty-reserved rights, but, we have seen that we can create solutions which meet everyone’s needs by sitting down with our neighbors, listening to each other, and developing our own solutions. We want to apply what we’ve learned locally to help revive threatened salmon populations in the region. We believe the cooperative process between neighbors can be used as a model for success in the region and beyond.”

The following cost information was provided for the November Work Group meeting.

  

November 17, 2010

Integrated Plan Construction and Annual Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Costs
		Construction Costs			Cost/acre-foot	Annual O&M
	Volume	Estimate	Lower	Upper
	(acre-feet)	(million dollars)			(dollars)	($1,000)
Water Supply
Storage
Bumping Lake Enlargement (New)	156,300	402.5	322.0	563.5	2,600	210.0
Wymer  (Option 1, pump to Wymer)	162,000	1,309.7	1,047.8	1,833.6	8,100	3,980.0
Kachess Inactive (tunnel)	200,000	253.8	203.0	355.3	1,300	270.0
Groundwater Infiltration	100,000	74.6	59.7	104.5	750	2,145.0
Cle Elum 3-foot raise	14,700	16.8	13.5	23.6	1,100	500.0
Total	633,000	2,057.4	1,646.0	2,880.5	3,300	7,105.0
Water Conservation
Agriculture
Enhanced Basin-Wide Program	170,000	549.9	439.9	769.9	3,200
KRD Canals (Main-South Branch)		35.9	28.7	50.3		25.0
Wapatox Canal (Option 1)		59.3	47.5	83.1		210.0
Municipal and Domestic						1.0
Total		645.1	516.1	903.3		236.0
Total Water Supply		2,702.5	2,162.1	3,783.8		7,341.0
Specific Fish Enhancement
Fish Passage		324.3	259.4	454.1		2,640.0
Fish Habitat
Tributaries		180.0	144.0	252.0
Mainstem		279.7	223.8	391.6
Keechelus to Kachess pipeline		190.7	152.5	266.9		90.0
Total Specific Fish		974.7	779.7	1,364.5		2,730.0
Future Study
Columbia River Pump/Storage		3.8	3.0	5.3
Total Integrated Plan		3,681.0	2,944.8	5,153.6		10,071.0
Options
Wymer (Option 2, Thorp Pump)		541.2	433.0	757.7		3,390.0
Kachess Inactive (Pump)		225.7	180.6	316.0		590.0
Wapatox Canal (Option 2)		82.1	65.7	115.0		210.0

 

Construction costs:  “Estimate” is that prepared by the consultants and includes contingencies plus 30% for design and permit costs.  “Lower” is -20% of the “Estimate” and “Upper” is +40% of the “Estimate”.

Cost/acre-foot: “Estimate” divided by “Volume” (capacity) or in the case of agriculture water conservation the estimated  “saved water”.

Bumping Lake Enlargement:  Total capacity is 190,000 acre-feet which includes 33,700 acre-feet of existing capacity (replacement) and 155,300 acre-feet of new capacity.

Options:  Measures that could be substituted for those listed in the table; i.e Kachess Inactive (pump) substituted for Kachess Inactive (tunnel).  The inclusion of these would change the total costs of the Integrated Plan shown in the table.

Columbia River Pumped Storage Reservoir

Sustaining the Interstate 82 Corridor Economy

 

The Project

The pumped storage of water from the Columbia River would provide important environmental, economic and recreational benefits for all of Central Washington.  The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) completed a Feasibility Study which proved the project would provide water for fish, agriculture, and municipal growth.  BOR’s Technical Analysis concluded a Columbia River pumped storage reservoir is technically viable.

 

 When flows in the Columbia River are high, water would be pumped to and stored in a reservoir.  Water from the reservoir would be used for irrigating Roza and Sunnyside Irrigation Districts which will allow the water currently withdrawn from the Yakima River for out of stream use to remain for instream flow and fish.  This means water in the Yakima River could be managed to create a more normal flow.  Essentially the reservoir allows the region to borrow some water from the Columbia when it’s not needed and then return it in kind, with fish.

 

The reservoir in its largest manifestation would hold 1.6 million acre/feet of water.  The reservoir would be approximately 24 miles from Yakima and 32 miles from Richland.

 

Benefits

$        Fish Enhancement:  The Yakima River has the potential to be one of the most productive salmon rivers in the lower 48 states.  The freed water in the Yakima River, because of a Columbia River pumped storage reservoir, would allow a more normal flow and cooler water in the river.  The additional water would create more habitat in the flood plain and fish passage at existing reservoirs.  Estimates by Jack Stanford, a world renowned fish biologist, are with the management of freed water from the Yakima Basin Reservoirs and with the use of Columbia River water for out of stream use (irrigation) the increase in the number of anadromous salmonids would range between 500,000 to 1 Million returning annually.

$        Agriculture:  Agriculture is Central Washington’s biggest job sector.  Columbia pumped storage will guarantee a 70 percent water allocation to junior water rights holders during consecutive drought years.  In the 2005 drought there was a loss of almost $250 Million in agricultural production with nearly $1 Billion ripple effect across the State.  (Source: Washington State Department of Agriculture)  The water made available from pumped storage is essential if the region wants to sustain its $1.3 Billion agriculture economy.

$        Job Creation:  Construction of a Columbia pumped storage reservoir and related distribution projects will create 10 to 20 Thousand jobs over the next 5 to 7 years.  Projects for fish passage and habitat improvements created by the additional water in the Yakima River will provide hundreds of jobs.

$        Recreation:  Columbia pumped storage will be one of the largest flat water recreation sites in eastern Washington.  It will be just 35 minutes west of the Tri-Cities and 30 minutes east of Yakima.  With this location, it is expected to become a world class resort, offering a wide range of recreation options.

$        Energy:  Energy Secretary urges pumped storage investment to support an expanded energy transmission grid.  The Columbia pumped storage reservoir would assist in expanding the energy transmission grid and facilitate wind integration.  Pumping water from the Columbia River at times of the day when power costs are relatively inexpensive coupled with the use of wind power generation would maximize the “storage battery” value of controllable generation from the reservoir.

$        Economic Development:  From world class wineries to high tech companies, Central Washington business development depends on a reliable water supply.  Additional freed water in the Yakima River basin will recharge the aquifer.  The surface water would be available for continued rural residential growth without depleting water fro senior water rights.

 

Total Project Costs: Columbia Pumped Storage

$3.152 Billion construction cost

$1.397 Billion mobilization, design and construction contingencies

$1.130 Billion non-contract costs

$5.679 Billion total over 5-7 years

            see page 2-52 Yakima River Basin Water Storage Facility Study Final PR/EIS

 

Increase of Available Water

1.6 Million Acre/Feet with 300,000 Acre/Feet inactive

1.3 Million Acre/Feet available annually for irrigation

 

Economic Benefits: A More Complete Picture

 

When recreational       benefits are added to economic impacts

Benefits                                        YBSA – Estimated Value Irrigated Agriculture                      $   930,000,000 Fisheries Use                                   $   100,000,000 Recreation & Resort                      $3,404,000,000 Hydropower                                    $   412,000,000 Municipal & Construction Jobs   $   468,000,000 Fisheries Nonuse                            $2,600,000,000 TOTAL                                          $7,914,000,000

derived from agriculture,

increased salmon stocks,

energy production, and facility construction, the Columbia pumped storage reservoir

benefits climb substantially.

The table to the right clearly

shows that the Reservoir’s

benefits exceed its costs.

 

See detailed information at ybsa.org for an explanation of benefits.

 

Columbia Pumped Storage:  The Time is Now

After numerous water short years and millions of dollars spent fighting over a limited supply of water, it’s time to solve our water problem.  Water that is needed to ensure salmon production and stabilize our economy is no longer guaranteed.  Changing climate and weather patterns, endangered species, and other factors present huge challenges.  We need to think BIG – Columbia pumped storage reservoir represents a win-win solution that sustains our natural environment and economy for the next 100 years.  With stimulus money, job creation, pumped storage enhancement of our energy grid and facilitation of wind integration we all should support Columbia River pumped storage for the Yakima River basin.

SUPPORT THE RESTORATION OF THE YAKIMA RIVER BASIN

On behalf of the Yakima Basin Storage Alliance and its board of directors we are informing you of our draft legislation titled, Yakima Basin Environmental and Salmon Restoration Act. This draft bill provides for a comprehensive habitat restoration program in the floodplains of the Yakima and Naches Rivers and to re-establish ecosystem functions and fish passage at existing dams.

The Black Rock Water Exchange Project is for the purpose of
       (1) improving the Yakima Project water supply for the benefit of
            (A) the anadromous fishery of the Yakima and Columbia River basins
                  by means of stream flow enhancement in the mainstem Yakima and
                  Naches Rivers of the Yakima basin,
            (B) improving the reliability of the Yakima Project irrigation water supply
                  for junior water rights in dry years when water deficiencies occur, and
            (C) providing a surface water supply from the Yakima Project to meet
                  future municipal water needs; and
       (2) providing future recreation and hydropower generation opportunities.

We have enlisted the expertise of Dr. Jack Stanford to help determine the productivity potential of the Yakima River Basin. Dr. Stanford has stated there are no better sites in the lower 48 states for salmon restoration than then Yakima River. He maintains, if done correctly, with the exchange of Columbia River water, the Yakima River could support one million salmon. At YBSA we have worked tirelessly to bring more normative flow to the Yakima River. Our proposals could mean as much as 800,000 a/f more water left in the Yakima River and a reduction of excessive flows in reaches during irrigation season.

The Bureau of Reclamation study of Black Rock has concentrated on the feasibility of creating the reservoir and its operation. This draft legislation spells out and proposes the financing of the restoration of the environment of the Yakima Basin for fish production, helping meet Treaty Rights of the Yakama Nation by naturalizing river flows and mending habitat compromised over the past century.

Our past history of studying our water supply problems must come to a conclusion with construction of new water storage infrastructure. This draft proposal is offered to stop us of walking on the edges of disaster any longer but instead mutually provide a solution to the Yakima River Basin water shortage problem. We know that if at the conclusion of the BOR Storage Study we as a community do not agree on a solution, no significant action will occur. We will continue to fight the same battles as the past.

Both the Executive Summary and Draft Legislation are posted on our website

http://www.ybsa.org/. Your comments and suggestions are welcome. Please submit them to YBSA on yakimabasinstoragealliance@yahoo.com.

Sincerely yours,

Sid Morrison
Chairman Yakima Basin Storage Alliance

YBSA Requests a Delay of the “Record of Decision”

 

YBSA concurs with Benton and Yakima Counties request that further work be done on a comprehensive and integrated approach of the Black Rock Alternative before a “Record of Decision” is made on the Yakima River Basin Storage Feasibility Study.  Attached is the letter from YBSA to the Bureau of Reclamation requesting the Bureau identify and analyze the least cost alternative for Yakima River Basin water supply.  After reviewing our comments, we feel an additional review needs to be completed before a “Record of Decision” is made.

For Additional Information on the Request go to Current Issues Link

Letter for Review of "Record of Decision"

Comments on Storage Study

Visit Our Sister Site for Information About Black Rock
See New Informational Video on bottom left of page
(Use the Link Below)
         http://www.futureofourvalley.com/


Yakima Basin Storage Alliance believes the rest of the story has to be told about the benefits of Black Rock Reservoir and how the "no action" recommendation places the Yakima Basin where it was years ago with insufficient water to meet the needs of fish, agriculture, and municipal growth. (see link below)

YES IT CAN
No Action = No Future

PRESS RELEASE

Yakima Basin Storage Alliance believes the no action alternative dooms the Yakima River Basin with insufficient water to meet the needs of fish, out of stream use, and municipal growth.

 

"We have been studying our diminishing water supply for decades, and the Black Rock study was a hoop we had to jump through get the water-exchange pump-storage concept on the table.

 

We consider the federal study a success. It tells us that the Black Rock Reservoir and water distribution system are technically feasible, and can be built. Black Rock is the only option that meets all the water supply criteria established by Congress.

 

We learned that, in an attempt to create a growing economy and thousands of jobs, we really established the potential of dramatic environmental restoration and up to a million returning salmon in our Yakima River system.

 

We also learned that the federal study process is so restricted that it can only look back, and that the major values that come with a consistent future supply of water are fish production and recreation. Since the Bureau of Reclamation couldn't look forward to the climate changes that are undeniably occurring, and can't project the value of salmon production or investments in recreation, the study only tells part of the story..

 

We agree with the study that the Black Rock concept is not a good buy if you can only look at history, but if you look to the future and accurately measure the broad base of potential benefits, we can't afford not to move ahead.

 

One area of disappointment: two federal agencies in direct conflict at taxpayer expense. The Bureau of Reclamation, with successful dam construction throughout the western United States, reports in detail that seepage from the reservoir at Black Rock can be effectively recovered and reused. The Department of Energy disagrees and claims a threat to underground water tables at Hanford, with no detail. This conflict needs to be resolved.

 

Perhaps a second disappointment is the recently released study by the State Department of Ecology. They miss the point entirely. There is not enough water in the Yakima Basin to satisfy the needs of the future, let alone the past, yet they continue to give hope to in-basin band-aids that have been turned down for years, even where they violate existing state policy.

 

Bottom line: we are tired of studying. The 'status quo' does not work for anyone. The Bureau of Reclamation has given us new tools that offer hope. We can build a water future for this Yakima River Basin, or we can fail. If you think Black Rock is expensive, you should see the cost of doing nothing. 


Sid Morrison
Chair, Yakima Basin Storage Alliance  

Effects of Potential Future Warming on Runoff in the Yakima River Basin, Washington (Use the Link Below)

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Prepared in cooperation with the
BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
By Mark C. Mastin

http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2008/5124/


Why Black Rock Reservoir?

 

To help restore Salmon in the Yakima River and stabilize water supplies for Basin Irrigation and Municipalities.  That will be done with a one-to-one inter-basin water transfer from the Columbia River to major Yakima Basin irrigation districts, via the yet to be built Black Rock Reservoir.  The irrigation water diverted out of the Yakima will be significantly reduced, hence the water that remains could be used to naturalize the Yakima River hydrograph.  Funding the construction of Black Rock Reservoir and critical fish passage and habitat on the Yakima will maximize Salmon Recovery in the Yakima River.  By doing so, a wonderful recreation site and hydropower storage options will be created at Black Rock.

The Bureau of Reclamation has been authorized by Congress to do the following:

• Improve anadromous fish habitat by restoring the flow regimes of the Yakima and Naches Rivers in the Yakima Basin to more closely resemble the natural (unregulated) hydrograph.
• Improve the water supply for proratable irrigation water rights in dry years by providing not less than 70-percent irrigation water supply during dry years at diversions subject to proration.

• Meet future municipal water supply needs by maintaining a full municipal water supply for existing users and providing additional surface water for population growth to the year 2050.
  

It’s Time!

 

One-hundred years ago our forefathers envisioned and created the existing reservoir system.  This fulfilled our needs, but now the Yakima Basin has water needs that outstretch that system.  It’s time to develop new water storage to meet the needs of the next one-hundred years.  Black Rock Reservoir is the answer.