Media
River News - In The Media
Bend Bulletin: Editorial: Water bank is just what Deschutes Basin needs
House Bill 3806 proposes the creation of a voluntary water bank in the Deschutes Basin to facilitate water transfers between rights holders, providing flexibility amid increasing drought conditions. With strong support and built-in safeguards, the bill aims to help irrigation districts like North Unit manage water more effectively while preventing speculation and ensuring long-term sustainability.
Source Weekly: Kotek and Conservation Groups Want DEQ to Address Deschutes River Water Quality
Governor Kotek and six conservation groups are calling on DEQ to revisit water quality standards and dam operations on the lower Deschutes River. They cite environmental concerns, while PGE and the Warm Springs Tribe maintain that current measures meet regulatory requirements.
Bend Bulletin: Guest column: Irrigation districts and landowners are working together to protect water
Despite challenges, the Deschutes Basin Board of Control reaffirms its commitment to the Deschutes Habitat Conservation Plan, highlighting ongoing progress through piping, water leasing, and collaborative conservation that has already secured over 150 cfs for streamflow restoration.
Redmond Spokesman: Delays loom for plan to increase Deschutes River winter flows
Delays in permitting canal piping projects may push back the Deschutes Basin Habitat Conservation Plan’s goal of increasing winter flows in the Deschutes River to 300 cfs by 2028, raising concerns about meeting conservation targets and protecting threatened species.
Bend Bulletin: Redmond gets state OK to use more water
Redmond has secured enough water to support its growing population for at least 15 years by creatively reallocating winter water for summer use, rather than increasing its supply. While the city explores additional options like transferring a historic Deschutes River water right to groundwater, Mayor Ed Fitch emphasizes that long-term sustainability will require continued conservation and strategic planning.
Bend Bulletin: January was dry, but Central Oregon snowpack levels have rebounded
Central Oregon is on track for one of the best water years in recent memory, with reservoirs at their highest levels since 2018 and snowpack at 128% of normal. The region is now drought-free, bringing optimism for irrigation, healthier rivers, and a strong winter tourism season.
Cascade Business News: Deschutes County Voters Approve Measure #9-176, Advancing Local Conservation Efforts
Deschutes County voters have passed Measure #9-176, providing stable funding for the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District to expand conservation efforts, improve water and forest management, and enhance urban green spaces through a permanent tax rate with oversight by an elected Board of Directors.
Bend Bulletin: Protect Deschutes Basin groundwater (Guest Column)
Bobby Brunoe, an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, emphasizes the sacred importance of water as the Creator’s first gift and calls for renewed collaboration, better science, and an integrated water policy to sustainably manage the Deschutes Basin’s shared resources for the benefit of all and future generations.
Bend Bulletin: Federal grant coming to Central Oregon for soil and water conservation
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has awarded a $509,992 grant to the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District to support agricultural projects in Deschutes and Jefferson counties, focusing on improving water efficiency, soil health, and wildlife habitat on 5,000 acres in the Deschutes Basin.
Bend Bulletin: Beaver dam appears on Whychus Creek after restoration effort
A year after a major restoration project transformed Whychus Creek’s floodplain, beavers have returned to the area, signaling the project’s success in revitalizing habitat for native wildlife and contributing to broader efforts to restore fish populations in the Deschutes Basin.
Bend Bulletin: Atmospheric river burying mountain areas with snow in Central Cascades
An atmospheric river is delivering significant snowfall to the Pacific Northwest, with Central Oregon's mountain passes and ski areas expecting several feet of accumulation, bolstering already above-average snowpack and precipitation levels.
Oregon Humanities: Becoming Water Wise
Residents and stakeholders in the Deschutes River Basin are working to modernize a century-old water rights system to address increasing water scarcity, balancing conservation, irrigation, and recreation needs through collaborative efforts like the Deschutes River Basin Habitat Conservation Plan, innovative irrigation practices, and water management policies.
Bend Bulletin: Columbia River salmon, steelhead returns average 2.3 million each year
About 2.3 million salmon and steelhead migrate up the Columbia River annually—double the 1990s numbers but still short of the 5 million goal—while efforts focus on boosting wild fish populations and improving returns above Bonneville Dam to support fisheries and natural reproduction.
Bend Bulletin: Guest column: How to avert a future groundwater crisis
Groundwater levels in the Deschutes Basin are rapidly declining due to reduced precipitation and overpumping, threatening domestic wells, wildlife habitats, and future growth, necessitating urgent conservation efforts and policy changes.
Bend Bulletin - Ballot offers voters an option to fund Deschutes County conservation projects
The Nov. 5 ballot includes a measure that, if passed, would create a permanent tax levy to provide significant new funding for the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District, allowing it to expand its conservation projects to improve water and soil health in Deschutes County.
Capitol Press - How Trump’s return may impact public, private land management
The return of Donald Trump to the presidency raises concerns about potential rollbacks of environmental protections in Oregon, with environmentalists fearing harm to federal lands and endangered species, while loggers, farmers, and others see opportunities for less restrictive regulations and improved resource management.
Bend Bulletin - Years-long restoration project brings fish and wildlife back to Whychus Creek near Sisters
Fish and wildlife are slowly returning to a creek near Sisters thanks to a years-long restoration project. Volunteers gathered Friday to plant hundreds of native flowering plants, called forbs, along Whychus Creek.
Bend Bulletin - Deschutes Basin water is focus of U.S. House hearing in Redmond
A U.S. House Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries held a field hearing in Redmond, Oregon, where representatives and local stakeholders discussed water shortages in the Deschutes Basin, highlighting collaboration efforts like the Deschutes Basin Habitat Conservation Plan and the ongoing challenges faced by farmers, ranchers, and conservationists.
Bend Bulletin - Ochoco Preserve restoration turns farmland to floodplain near Prineville
The Deschutes Land Trust is transforming the 185-acre Ochoco Preserve near Prineville from former farmland into a restored floodplain, with efforts focused on improving habitat for wildlife, restoring streamflow, and planting native vegetation to crowd out invasive species, while also creating public trails and connections to the Crooked River Wetlands Complex.
Bend Bulletin - Kotek kick-starts multistate, tribal plan to increase native fish in Columbia basin
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed an executive order to ensure state agencies collaborate effectively to support the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative, a federal program partnered with tribal nations and Washington State, investing over $1 billion to restore wild fish populations in the Columbia River Basin, including provisions for dam removals and enhancing tribal clean energy production.
