Lake Roosevelt Water Rights Begin Adjudication
- Details
- Published: Monday, 17 January 2022 18:39
The legislature approved starting adjudication of Lake Roosevelt water rights. Adjudication will also include the area that drains into Lake Roosevelt between the confluence with the Spokane River and downstream from the mouth of the Colville River.
Adjudication is a legal process that results in all water users receiving certainty about their water rights. This includes both users issued permits by Ecology and claims to water made before the state adopted its water code.
Ecology’s 2020 “Water Resources Adjudication Assessment Legislative Report” recommended adjudication. The report states that “The claims of the Colville and Spokane Tribes over the Columbia River pose one of the most profound uncertainties of water management in the state. Adjudication is the only tool to bring tribal water into alignment with state law.”
Water Rights in Play
The Bureau of Reclamation holds state issued water rights with an apparent 1938 priority date. These rights are used to irrigate over 670,000 acres of Columbia Basin Project farmland. It’s also used to supply water to the Odessa subarea as part of the Lake Roosevelt Incremental Storage Program.
The Colville Tribes claim a senior water right for their land reservation of over 470,000-acre feet with a priority date of 1872. Both the Colville and Spokane tribes claim immemorial water rights to meet fish and wildlife needs.
Ecology notes, however, that “… there is uncertainty and disagreement as to whether the state can protect or regulate these [tribal] rights.” In the face of this uncertainty, the Colville Tribes petitioned for adjudication in 2019 and the Spokane Tribe did not object.
Considerations
Ecology believes adjudication would streamline consideration of future large-scale water projects on both reservation and non-reservation land. Such projects, for instance, could be part of irrigating tribal lands or developing new water storage capacity.
Regarding fish passage, Ecology states “The legal assessment of tribal water rights in the Upper Columbia River, particularly Lake Roosevelt itself, has been a missing piece of this entire management system.” Currently, salmon reintroduction efforts being led by the tribes are based on continuation of current lake operations.
While the adjudication process plays out over a projected 10-to-20-year time frame, related water issues will also be playing out. For instance, Columbia River Treaty negotiations could significantly impact lake operations and water flows; assumptions will continue about continuing to supply water to the Columbia Basin Project; desires to support downstream municipal, industrial and agricultural users will continue unabated; and new large-scale projects will continue to be proposed (see pumped storage article in this newsletter).
As such, the road to certainty through adjudication will also be weaving through a dynamic path.
What’s Next
During the current state biennium ending June 30, 2023, Ecology expects to delineate water sources, identify water users, and prepare a statement and plan. The Attorney General’s office will then file a petition with the court to proceed with adjudication.
Continuing the effort into future biennia will rely on the legislature continuing to fund the effort.