Time to Take Action

Archive 228 - May 2021
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KBC EDITOR May 2022: For the first time in known history our farms are denied irrigation water from Klamath Lake for the entire farm season. Our farms that were historically under up to 25' of water, a navigable lake, are now denied water by our federal government; they say these thousands of "endangered suckers' don't have enough water despite science and court orders to the contrary. Hundreds of family farms and wildlife species and entire communities suffer from this political agenda-driven travesty. The Klamath Reclamation Project is one of the most efficient Projects in the country, pumping and reusing the water 7 times, which then runs through the Tulelake Wildlife Refuge, is diverted out of the Project into the Klamath Wildlife Refuges, then into the Klamath River.

* FACT CHECK regarding Flushing Flows taken from Klamath Irrigators' water storage for salmon, by Rex Cozzalio 5/29/21. "in one ‘pulse’ alone, enough water was wasted that would supply the needs of 7,000,000 people for a year or approximately 202,000 irrigated acres, with EVERY single pulse occurring at far higher levels than EVER reported to occur at that same time of year..."

Klamath Project irrigators say more drought relief needed after A Canal shutdown, Capital Press 5/26/21. "U.S. Reps. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., and Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., have also introduced a $57 million disaster aid proposal to assist the Klamath Basin. Within that package, $40 million would go directly to agricultural producers through USDA programs."

Environmentalist lawsuit targets post-fire tree removal, Capital Press 5/25/21. "The project is expected to generate about 30 million board-feet of timber — enough to fill 6,000 logging trucks.." KBC NOTE: Klamath Forest Alliance is the NGO that shut down mills and logging towns for the spotted owl. They also helped found Klamath Riverkeeper, with a board of Klamath River Tribes, that has sued Klamath irrigators regarding water quality, PacifiCorp to rip out dams, and they shut down suction dredge mining.

Those who don’t support agriculture should stop eating, Liz Writes Life, Siskiyou Daily News 5/19/21. Klamath Basin farmer, Rodney Cheyne: “...You know in America there are programs to end hunger. Especially for children, school lunch programs so kids don’t go hungry during school day. Summer lunch programs so kids can get at least one meal a day. Food banks to help the needy and hungry who can’t afford food. ..."
Congressman LaMalfa: "...the farmers and ranchers have paid and continue to pay for the canal system and dams that store water and that court decisions have repeatedly recognized the stored project water in the lake belongs to the farmers.“Reclamation will again seize what they do not own, without compensation, to comply with questionable Endangered Species Act requirements...”

Modoc, Siskiyou and Klamath County leaders: Devastation, desperation for Klamath Basin agriculture by Michael Kobseff and Brandon Criss of Siskiyou County, Ned Coe and Geri Byrne of Modoc County and Derrick DeGroot of Klamath County, Herald and News 5/15/21

Letter from Klamath Irrigation District to Bureau of Reclamation 5/14/21.
* The 1954 Contract Does Not Grant Reclamation Total Discretion to Curtail Diversions
* Reclamation reinstallation of bulkheads violates KID’s 1954 contract
* Section 9 of ESA does not authorize Reclamation to preemptively curtail KID diversions
* Reclamation is liable for all damages directly or indirectly resulting from its resumption of operational control of the A-Canal
* KID is reassuming operational control and removing bulkheads

Siskiyou, Modoc, Klamath counties come together to secure water for farms, Liz Writes Life, Siskiyou Daily News 5/13/21. "...We heard first-hand accounts of the hardship, the complexity of compounding complications, and the heroic efforts of farm operators, water managers, and local business who are trying to hold it together. These hard-working producers — through no fault of their own — will see zero Klamath Project water supply that was specifically developed to support their operations. Imagine if someone took all of your blood and told you: “Just deal with it.” It’s that bad..."

"How in the hell is the rest of America and other countries going to feed themselves let alone the needy when you shut the water off to the farmers...?" by Klamath Basin farmer Rodney Cheyne 5/13/21.

Ineffective environmental practice turns off the tap for Klamath Basin farmers during drought, Oregon Rep E. Werner Reschke 5/13/21.

BOR letter to Klamath Irrigation District: No Water for Klamath Irrigators in 2021 5/12/21

Extreme drought conditions force closure of Klamath Project’s “A” Canal, Bureau of Reclamation News Release KBC 5/12/21. "Klamath Project’s “A” Canal will remain closed for the 2021 irrigation season."

Ducks Unlimited announces NRCS funding for Klamath Basin, Klamath Falls News 5/11/21. “Supporting conservation actions on private lands helps provide important ecosystem services including clean water, groundwater recharge and habitat for fish and wildlife,” said Dan Keppen, executive director of the Family Farm Alliance. “In turn, local communities benefit from agricultural productivity, making funding from collaborative, voluntary programs like RCPP critical to maintaining ecological and socioeconomic function in SONEC and the Klamath Basin.”
"
Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 15 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent."

Letter to President Biden from Siskiyou, Modoc and Klamath County in Response to April 16, 2021 Joint Letter from Tribes and environmental groups regarding Klamath Irrigation and disaster funds 5/7/21

PRESS RELEASE: LaMalfa introduces bill blocking radical Biden land grab 5/7/21.

Dry ditch portends hard future for farmers  It’s ruining habitat and water sources for animals, and is making young men like me worry that farming might not be here when it is my time to produce crops to feed America.

Judge refuses to restrict water releases from Upper Klamath Lake, Capital Press 5/6/21

25 Years ago: Converting 3000 acres Tulana Farms to wetland to improve UK water quality, H&N May 1, 2021 This week in Klamath Basin History. "...Mark Stern, project coordinator for the Nature Conservancy, said a general agreement has been reached for the purchase of Tulana Farms, a 4700-acre tract at the mouth of the Williamson River. Most of the land would be flooded..."  KBC NOTE: 97,160 acres of agricultural land has been converted into wetlands from ag as primary water usage through 2006 above Klamath Lake. Wetlands use nearly 2ce as much water as ag lands. 
 

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