Klamath Falls, OR (December 5, 2025) – The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Oregon has released a Final Watershed Plan Environmental Assessment (EA) and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the Klamath Drainage District (KDD) Infrastructure Modernization Project.
NRCS Oregon has determined that the project will not cause significant local, regional, or national impacts to the environment. With a Final Watershed Plan EA in place, the project is now eligible for federal funding (pending Plan authorization by NRCS Chief Bettencourt) and may move forward into final design and construction.
The project will install a fish screen at the North Canal Diversion on the Klamath River; extend the North Canal and connect it to the P-1 Lateral; modify the North Canal to increase flow capacity; upgrade two pump stations for operational efficiency and to reduce water discharge to the Klamath River via the Klamath Straits Drain; and install flow monitoring and automated gates throughout the project area to improve water management.
By modernizing infrastructure, the proposed project would enable KDD to improve water management within its conveyance system and benefit fish populations in the Klamath River by preventing fish from getting trapped in KDD’s canals. By reducing water use inefficiencies, the proposed project would improve water quality in the Klamath River. The project would also allow KDD to supply additional water to the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, which would increase critically needed habitat for wildlife.
The project is a joint effort among NRCS Oregon and KDD as the project sponsor and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as cooperating agencies, in coordination with other agencies, stakeholders, and the public.
The project may be partially funded through the Watershed and Flood Prevention Program, administered by NRCS and authorized by Public Law 83-566. Through this program, NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to local organizations (project sponsors) for planning and implementing projects that help solve natural resource and related economic problems in a specific watershed. These projects can include watershed protection, flood prevention, erosion and sediment control, water supply, water quality, fish and wildlife habitat enhancement, and wetlands creation.
Klamath Falls, OR – Last week, Klamath Drainage District (KDD) staff witnessed large dark masses below the surface of the water in the Ady Canal. Upon further inspection, those dark masses surfaced the water exposing their fins. On Friday, October 17th, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) confirmed that the fins were those of Chinook salmon. To date, salmon have been spotted from the head of the Ady Canal all the way down to the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge).
Scott White, the General Manager for the district said, “It’s a very exciting time. However, I never want to have to say, ‘I told you so.’ But dang it, I told you so,” he said with frustration. “It’s been nine years since the KPFA was signed and none of the promises made to farmers in that agreement regarding reintroduction of species have been upheld.”
White is referring to the Klamath Power and Facilities Agreement (KPFA) which was signed in 2016 by the United States, the State Governments of Oregon and California, and multiple Klamath Basin stakeholders. Specifically, White refers to Section II.B.2a and b that commits the federal and state parties to support funding “entrainment reduction facilities” for Klamath Project contractors (water users). There have been no fish screens installed under the agreement to date.
“We have been warning folks of this day for years and begging for support and very little has been done beyond lip service,” White continued. “Are you paying attention, now? A lot of effort and dollars were put into dam removal and restoration—now let’s see that fish are protected the way the KPFA intended.”
Although there have been no screens installed under the terms of the KPFA, KDD and Family Water Alliance (FWA) are forcing movement on the installation of five screens on turnouts in the Ady Canal. KDD has been working closely with the FWA, the Bureau of Reclamation and the ODFW on a $4.5 million multi-screen project that will assist in keeping these fish from going down turnouts where they don’t belong.
“While it’s exciting for everyone to see salmon in the Upper Basin and even in our district, we need to protect our landowners as well as the fish for this to be successful,” said KDD Board Member and district farmer, Scotty Fenters. “These screens should have been installed already to do just that.”
Since the early days of dam removal, KDD has been working hard with other stakeholders, especially the Yurok Tribe, on salmon restoration projects on its private lands and its private facilities. The screening project complements KDD’s plan to connect the river to the Refuge permanently. The project could provide access to thousands of acres of wetland habitat for the benefit of fish, fowl, and farms. The concept, known as “Replumbing the Klamath” or the “Lower Klamath Lake Reconnection”, includes water security for Klamath Project water users, which results in habitat for fish and birds in the heart of the Pacific Flyway. White said, “These salmon sightings prove the concept and define a secure future of balance and sustainability for all interests in the Klamath Basin.”
KDD owns all the district’s delivery infrastructure and want to remind everyone to respect private property, particularly for safety reasons.
“It’s an exciting time on the district for fish and bird watchers. We get it,” said White. “We frequently invite tours on our waterfowl-rich lands,” he said, citing to the popular annual Lower Klamath Renaissance Tour. “We are working on ways that we can be more accommodating to the public, but we have more work to do. Please be patient with us, but more importantly, please respect our landowners’ private property.”
About the Klamath Drainage District:
Klamath Drainage District (KDD) is a 27,000-acre district located in southern Oregon bordering the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge in California. KDD proactively works to improve distribution and delivery of its scarce water resources including recycling over 35,000 acre-feet annually through its recently installed recirculation pumping plants. Of this recycled water, most is reused to grow crops, but a percentage is used for growers outside of the district and used for habitat improvement and other refuge purposes. KDD is home to one of the largest concentrations of bald eagles in the lower 48 states and prides itself on its restoration activities and the tremendous wildlife viewing opportunities it provides.
The Klamath Drainage District has been working for nine years to get fish screens installed in the district’s canals to protect family farmers and fish populations. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
Klamath Falls, OR – On August 28th, 2025, the Klamath Drainage District held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the North Canal autogate to celebrate the groundbreaking and installation of Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) equipment on the district.
$5 million in funding was secured by Senator Jeff Merkley in the Fiscal Year 2022 Appropriations Bill with assistance from the Klamath Water Users Association and the Farmers Conservation Alliance (FCA) to help push it across the finish line. The district’s SCADA project is part of a greater network of sites located throughout the Klamath Reclamation Project. Installation of the system is being coordinated by the FCA, the group that has been instrumental in getting many district Watershed Plans drafted.
“This has been a long time coming,” said KDD Manager, Scott White. “Sometimes it feels like we spend too much time analyzing, but I’m not complaining today. Today, we’re celebrating.”
The SCADA system will allow KDD to gather data to monitor the water levels in the district’s canals and drains, and as needed, automatically open and close gates as well as turn on pumps to maintain water levels. “This will add another layer of efficiency for the district, which is already able to recycle more than 75% of water used by our growers,” added White.
White also recognized the turn out by the Bureau of Reclamation who are overwhelmingly supporting this work. “It was great to see so many folks from Reclamation here for this event. There were folks from Sacramento who came up to celebrate with us.” said White.
Gene Souza with the Klamath Irrigation District (KID) also gave praise to all the good work that has recently gone into getting this equipment installed. “It’s a great opportunity to be part of a new era in water management.” Souza said. KID is slated to install five SCADA sites with this first phase of installations.
For KDD family farmers and ranchers, the eight sites and the system’s real-time data collection abilities will help make water delivery smoother, allow for automated adjustments, and in the long-run, help with drought planning and flood conditions. By making water deliveries more efficient, opportunities for creating more water available for Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge and the district’s other habitat restoration efforts arise as well.
“The completion of this SCADA project marks an important step forward in supporting districts with more efficient, timely, and reliable water delivery,” said KWUA Executive Director, Elizabeth Nielsen. “Congratulations to KDD and the partners that worked together on this effort, including Reclamation and the Farmer’s Conservation Alliance.”
“First off, I’d like to thank Senator Merkley for securing the funds for this project,” said KDD board president, Bill Walker. “And I’d also like to thank the folks at the Bureau of Reclamation and at FCA for getting this project on the ground. It’s going to be incredibly helpful for our landowners, not to mention efforts like the Lower Klamath Lake Reconnection project. It’s a classic win-win.”
In attendance at the ceremony were the KDD Board of Directors, Bill Walker and Josh McPhearson; representatives from Senator Merkley’s office, the Bureau of Reclamation, Farmers Conservation Alliance, Klamath Water Users Association, Klamath Irrigation District, the Klamath County Chamber of Commerce and the general public.
About the Klamath Drainage District:
Klamath Drainage District (KDD) is a 27,000-acre district located in southern Oregon bordering the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge in California. KDD proactively works to improve distribution and delivery of its scarce water resources including recycling over 35,000 acre-feet annually through its recently installed recirculation pumping plants. Of this recycled water, most is reused to grow crops, but a percentage is used for growers outside of the district and used for habitat improvement and other refuge purposes. KDD is home to one of the largest concentrations of bald eagles in the lower 48 states and prides itself on its restoration activities and the tremendous wildlife viewing opportunities it provides.
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Guests visiting before KDD’s SCADA ribbon-cutting ceremony on the North Canal off of Lower Klamath Lake Road. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
KDD President Bill Walker had the honor of cutting the ribbon to kick-off the Klamath Drainage District’s SCADA system installation. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
The Bureau of Reclamation’s Deputy Regional Director Adam Nichols addressing KDD’s guests. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
Gene Souza, Klamath Irrigation District Manager, addressing KDD’s guests. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
KDD Board President Bill Walker cutting the ribbon for the district’s SCADA system project. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
Klamath Drainage District’s guests celebrating the ribbon-cutting on KDD’s SCADA system project. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
Klamath Drainage District Manager Scott White visiting with representatives from Senator Jeff Merkley’s office. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
KDD’s SCADA ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by representatives from Senator Merkley’s office, the Bureau of Reclamation, Farmers Conservation Alliance, Klamath Water Users Association, Klamath Irrigation District, the Klamath County Chamber of Commerce and the general public. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
KDD President Bill Walker visiting with Alan Heck and Heather Casillas of the Bureau of Reclamation after the ceremony. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
Klamath Water Users Association’s Executive Director Elizabeth Nielsen visiting with Bureau of Reclamation Deputy Regional Directors Adam Nichols and Kristin White. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
After Klamath Drainage District’s SCADA project ribbon-cutting ceremony, guests visited about other projects. Photo by Darcy Hill, KDD.
During irrigation season, it’s not uncommon to see white pickups with long poles jutting from the bed and over the cab as they make their way throughout the Klamath Basin to ensure water is being delivered to farms and ranches.
In the winter in the Klamath Irrigation Project, you’ll find fewer pickups bouncing down ditchbanks and along canals. Instead, you’re more likely to see backhoes and excavators perched along waterworks.
An excavator sits in a Klamath Drainage District field, ready to clean the canal. Darcy Hill, KDD
That doesn’t mean work slows down for Klamath Project irrigation districts.
According to Klamath Irrigation District (KID) district manager Gene Souza, the district’s winter operations and plans are the results of “careful thought and hard lessons learned.”
Within KID are over 200 miles of canals and 200 miles of drains that provide water for over 40,000 acres in its district, 7,000 acres of individual Warren Act contracts, and another 10,000 acres for lands under the Klamath Basin Improvement District.
KID fall/winter operations start at the end of the irrigation season. A 30-day “sluffing off” period allows the canals to slowly draw down to prevent collapsing, followed by “ratting” to fix problems caused by burrowing animals and inspections to identify emergency repairs and prioritize the maintenance and repair list.
On that list are a variety of standing projects, including repairs to roads, bridges, and canals, fish-screen cleaning, replacing actuators on the A Canal Headworks, building turnouts, piping problem
Klamath Irrigation District’s crews removed snow from the A Canal Facility during the latest round of winter storms. KID District Manager, Jaxsen Sikorski
sections of the canals, and much, much more.
Even with this week’s snow fall, KID’s crews were anything but idle.
According to Souza, “This week (the week of February 10th) we have had the crews, when the roads allowed, to focus on HQ maintenance and pouring concrete turnouts instead of cleaning drains and repairing bridges.”
But the most dramatic project KID worked on was repairing a mile-long tunnel that runs under Klamath Falls.
The original tunnel was built in 1904, but abandoned by the Bureau of Reclamation and then redug in 1906. Over the decades, the tunnel received a concrete lining to preserve its integrity and a new floor was poured in the 1980s.
Klamath Irrigation District maintenance crews applied hydrophobic layer of shotcrete to a mile long tunnel of the A Canal that runs beneath Klamath Falls. KID District Manager, Jaxsen Sikorski
However, since 2021, KID’s inspection crews noticed more repairs were needed to the walls and ceiling of the tunnel. If the tunnel failed, the disaster would affect citizens in Klamath Falls as well as the farms served by the A Canal.
When funds from the Federal government failed to materialize, Souza made the decision for the district to fund its own solution. The result was KID’s board approving a budget to address the areas of concern in the tunnel.
“To make it a more lasting 50+ year solution,” said Souza, “we put extra expense into applying a hydrophobic layer of shotcrete to the areas of the walls that come into contact with water.”
In spite of the challenges winter presents the irrigation districts – especially a wet, snowy one like the Klamath Basin is experiencing – the district manager still appreciates the moisture.
“Snow is always welcome . . . even when it slows us down,” said Souza.
For the Klamath Drainage District (KDD), winter brings its own set of challenges. But according to district manager Scott White, there isn’t much of a shift from irrigation season to winter operations.
“Since we have a year-round water right, our single purpose for delivering water is to make sure it is available for our landowners whenever they need it,” said White. “So that means making sure our canals have water in them and our delivery systems are operating properly.”
Klamath Drainage Districts maintenance shop on Lower Klamath Lake Road. Darcy Hill, KDD
Similar to KID, maintenance and repairs are an important part of winter operations. But water delivery remains the district’s top priority.
The 27,000 acres served by KDD have a unique water right that allows the district to take water from the end of the irrigation season (usually around October) through the winter months. This water right helps the district – and the Klamath Project – operate as it was originally designed and helps the Lower Klamath area operate in a manner inline with how it did naturally.
From maintaining soil moisture that makes its growers less reliant on spring and summer irrigation to managing pest and weeds that benefits KDD’s organic farmers, this water right is hugely beneficial to the district’s patrons. And for wildlife, the district’s flooded fields provide “key habitat for migratory birds in the fall/winter and even the early spring.“
For KDD’s crews, this means making sure pumps and pumping stations are operating properly, checking water quality, and ensuring headgates and turnouts aren’t being slowed or blocked by ice. As noted by White, winter operations are similar to irrigation season, with ice replacing weeds and moss.
Another challenge for the district is when the farms request the fields to be drained for spring.
“I do worry about our landowners wanting to drain all at once but I do not have that sense at this time,” said White. “Furthermore, with the hard freeze we’re having, the ice will not allow massive drainage, so we may be ok without having to ask our landowners to slow down or take turns.”
In the winter, Klamath Drainage District ensures Unit 2 of the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge receives water under its water right. Darcy Hill, KDD
During this time of year, KDD is also responsible for ensuring that the Klamath Basin Refuges Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge receives water as requested per the refuge’s water right. And if there’s drainage water available, the district can elect to send it to Unit 2 of the refuge versus down the Klamath River.
When asked more about the benefits of the district’s winter operations, White answered, “We have tremendous opportunities to utilize Lower Klamath for the benefit of the Project, the refuges, and the entire Basin from an operational perspective. The sooner folks begin realizing the potential of Lower Klamath, the better off we all will be in managing the water for species, habitat and growing food.”
Fall and winter flooding benefit Klamath Ag and wildlife
The flooded fields in the Klamath Drainage District not only the success of the district’s family farmers and ranchers, it also echoes the ecosystem of Lower Klamath for area wildlife.
After the last potato has been dug, the last lush hayfield swathed and baled, and the last kernel of grain harvested and stored in a granary, farming and ranching in the Klamath Drainage District takes on a distinctly different tone.
Cows that lazed about pastures now eagerly await the feed wagon for hay. Fields once green with thriving crops and then brown from those same crops harvested give way to a flooded landscape reminding us that the 27,000 acres of rich cropland was once a part of Lower Klamath Lake.
This field flooded by Ron McGill benefits from natural pest control (including weeds) while the soil is replenished.
KDD is unique from other districts in the Klamath Project in part because of its unique soils, which make fall and winter flooding advantageous for growing conditions the following spring and summer.
In recognition of this historical practice, the district’s water rights specifically provide for fall/winter flooding. At times these water rights have been criticized despite the benefits managing water this way provides for KDD family farmers and ranchers, the Klamath Project, wildlife in the district, and the greater Klamath Basin ecosystem.
Winter in the district
KDD farmers and ranchers operate much like other operations in the Klamath Basin in the winter.
For ranchers, cows and other livestock need to be fed. Grain, hay, and row crop growers are reaching out to buyers and moving commodities as needed.
However, KDD’s fall and winter water diversions add another element producers in other Klamath Project districts don’t have to worry about – irrigation.
Benefits for Klamath Ag
For KDD farmers and ranchers, fall/winter flooding provides several advantages that support sustainable agriculture in the district.
A wheel line sits in a flooded field farmed by Ron McGill.
One primary benefit for KDD producers, as well as other farmers in Klamath Project irrigation districts, is fall and winter flooding pre-irrigates the pastures and fields in the district. When the Bureau of Reclamation allows for water to be diverted from Upper Klamath Lake for Klamath Basin agriculture, the demand from KDD is less in those early months.
With less demand from KDD growers, elevation levels in Upper Klamath Lake are impacted less, and in those early months of the irrigation season other districts are able to divert more water to their patrons.
There’s also the benefit of chemical-free pest control and fertilization.
After crops are harvested, some producers burn their fields to rid them of stubble and weeds. Burning fields helps stop invasive weeds from getting a foothold in the fields while also putting nutrients back into the soil.
Flooding those same fields helps break down the torched organic matter further and keep the seeds of pest plants from growing. And for fields that weren’t touched by fire, soil health is enhanced at the microbial level, recreating the rich earth that encouraged early settlers to establish farms in the area.
As a result, KDD farmers and ranchers require less fertilizer and pesticides when the growing season rolls around. For this reason, KDD alone accounts for nearly 10 percent of all of Oregon’s organic farming acres.
Fall and winter flooding helps break down plant matter and return important nutrients back to the soil.
Benefits for the Lower Klamath ecosystem
Aside from the need for fewer pesticides and fertilizers, winter irrigation benefits the greater Klamath Basin ecosystem in several ways.
By cutting down on the amount of fertilizer needed to grow a crop, fall and winter flooding helps cut down on the amount of phosphorus needed to grow a crop. Not only does that help prevent excessive phosphorus from potentially being sent down the Klamath River, it helps prevent excess phosphorus from leaching into groundwater.
For groundwater, flooding fields in the off season helps recharge the aquifer. Over the last few years, wells have gone dry due to the Bureau of Reclamation cutting off water to the Klamath Project. Getting moisture into the ground helps replenish these sources of water, and during hot, dry summer months, can affect the local climate when that moisture is evaporated and then released during thunderstorms.
Flooded fields provide habitat for birds migrating the Pacific Flyway, such as these Canada geese.
Flooding KDD’s fields during the fall and winter months also helps this region of the Klamath Basin function more closely to how it did before the Klamath Project was developed. Before white settlers came to the area, this marshy triangle on the north end of Lower Klamath Lake provided the Modocs with food and fiber to sustain their way of life.
Though the plant life has changed, getting water onto the landscape annually remains essential to honor the traditional ecosystem function of the area.
Helping wildlife in the Lower Klamath
Swans and honkers taking advantage of a flooded field north of the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge.
The Klamath Basin is a major migration corridor for birds traveling the Pacific Flyway. With KDD’s proximity to Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge and Bear Valley National Wildlife Refuge, the district is a hotspot for birdwatchers and hunters alike.
Since water to Tule Lake and Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuges has been scarce for water the last few years, fields and pastures have become the principal refuge for wildlife.
From Tulelake to Worden and up to Midland, farms and ranches have provided much needed habitat and food sources for wildlife. In the fall, these seasonal wetlands provide food for shore birds, migrating Sandhill cranes, and local herons and egrets.
Come winter, with the increased migration of ducks, geese, and swans on the Pacific Flyway, the flooded fields become open water that welcome the travelers to stop and rest before continuing their journey south.
For raptors, such as this bald eagle, winter flooding provides hunting opportunities.
For coyotes and raptors, the advancing and receding waters drive small prey from the ground for them to hunt. The abundant waterfowl near the fields’ shorelines and in the canals provide another source of food for predators.
In the spring, as the flooded fields are drained for farming, deer and antelope can be found eating the soft green growth as it emerges.
From soil health to providing habitat, KDD’s fall and winter flooding is as important to the success to the growers in the district as it is the Klamath Basin ecosystem and ultimately the entire Pacific Flyway. And as time goes on, sustainable practices such as this will be more recognized for the wide-ranging advantages they provide agriculture and the environment.
Members of REAL Oregon’s Class 8 learned about Klamath Basin water issues from stakeholders from throughout the watershed
On a blustery November evening, Class 8 of REAL Oregon got a firsthand look of the challenges of Klamath Basin water issues.
Following a day of touring the Klamath Basin that included stops at the former J.C. Boyle dam site and Spencer Creek with Klamath Water Users Association’s Director of Water Policy, Moss Driscoll, the bus rolled into the Merrill Civic Center for a panel discussion titled, “Dam! Now What?”
The eight-person panel was filled by representatives for economic, Tribal, agricultural, and governmental interests in the ongoing Klamath Basin water discussions. Sitting on the panel were:
Darren Rutledge, Executive Director, The Klamath Idea
Becky Hyde, Upper Klamath Basin Ag Collaborative
Ken Griggs, Acting Refuge Manager, US Fish & Wildlife Service Klamath Refuge Complex
Willie Ray, Jr., Chairman of the Klamath Tribes
Jonathan Teichert, City Manager, City of Klamath Falls
Dave Hensley, Klamath County Board of Commissioners
Frankie Myers, Vice Chairman, Yurok Tribe
Tracey Liskey, KWUA President and Klamath Drainage District board member
The REAL Oregon panel for “Dam! Now What?” featured stakeholders from up and down the Klamath River watershed.
After audience and panel introductions, discussion moderator Scott White, KDD general manager and member of REAL Oregon’s Pioneer Class, jumped into the conversations.
With the recent completion of Klamath River dam removal, White focused the discourse on the history of the Klamath dams and the panelists’ thoughts about them, what dam removal means to the stakeholders and their groups, and what they foresee with salmon returning to the Upper Klamath Basin.
KDD General Manager and REAL Oregon alumnus, Scott White, hosted the panel discussion.
As expected, the conversation was lively and passionate, though friendly.
Panelists shared their frustrations about the dam removal process, as well as their hopes for their communities now that the structures were out. One point of consensus was the fact that with the dams are out and the salmon are coming, the focus needs to shift rebuilding trust and working together on restoration efforts in the entire Klamath River watershed.
Tracey Liskey, KDD board member and KWUA president, spoke to the audience about the effect of salmon returning to the Upper Klamath Basin on agriculture.
Klamath Tribes’ Chairman, Willie Ray Jr., gave his perspective on what salmon returning to the Klamath Basin represents to the tribe.
At the end of the panelist conversation, the REAL Oregon audience had time for a brief question and answer session. Like the panel discussion, the responses to Class 8’s questions highlighted the complexity of Klamath Basin water issues as well as the need for cooperation.
REAL Oregon’s Class 8 audience asked the panel questions after the main discussion.
What is REAL Oregon?
Standing for Resource Education and Agricultural Leadership, REAL Oregon is a program operated by the Oregon Agricultural Education Foundation (OAEF) through the Oregon Farm Bureau.
With a focus on Oregon agriculture, the REAL Oregon program “is a leadership enhancement and development program designed for farming, ranching, forestry, and commercial fishing professionals, producers, affiliated industries, association staff, public agency personnel, and members of resource related boards, commissions, and associations”.
Each Class starts in November and runs through March, with class members attending a monthly session in a different part of the state. While the sessions focus on training Oregon’s future ag leaders about working with government, dealing with the media, and skills that are useful in the boardroom, the program also delves into subjects specific to Oregon agriculture, such as November’s topic, “Klamath Water Project”.
Class 1, also known as the Pioneer Class, graduated in March of 2017. Since then, REAL Oregon has educated over 130 alumni.
“Frankly, it is an honor and a privilege to be an alumnus of the pioneer class and accompanied by such prestigious leaders,” said White. “We still attract the finest talent in the state. I think that says a lot about this program”.
Big changes for irrigation efficiency and modernization – as well as for habitat restoration – are getting underway in the Klamath Basin.
With several of those projects happening in the Klamath Drainage District (KDD), the district held two meetings to gather public comments and to inform KDD landowners and neighboring interests about reconnecting the Klamath River to Lower Klamath Lake.
Public Comment Meeting
KDD recently received confirmation from the Farmers Conservation Alliance (FCA) that its Modernization Project Draft Watershed Plan has been approved by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). As part of the process, KDD needed to hold a meeting to educate the public about the projects and gather public comments.
Gary Diridoni, NRCS Oregon Watershed Program Manager, going over the requirements for PL-566 projects.
The meeting was held on October 29th at Klamath Community College’s Conference Center. KDD Manager, Scott White, kicked off the meeting at 11 am, sharing details about the drainage district and why they sought PL-566 project funding from the NRCS.
“We have a lot of infrastructure things we want to do on the district,” White said. “We are limited in our financial resources, so we look for opportunities that are out there to help us pursue some of those things we want to do and not put as much of a burden on our landowners.”
Raija Bushnell, FCA Watershed Planning Program Manager, discussing part of KDD’s Draft Watershed Plan.our landowners.”
Following White’s opening comments, Gary Diridoni, NRCS Watershed Program Manager. Diridoni covered PL-566 requirements, emphasizing that all PL-566 projects must have benefits for agriculture and rural communities.
Before wrapping up the presentations, Raija Bushnell, FCA’s Watershed Planning Program Manager spoke about the planning process and dove into details about the projects, how they came about, and the benefits these projects provide. The projects she covered include:
North Canal Extension across State Line to the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge (which includes upgrades/enlargement)
North Canal Fish Screen at the Klamath River
Straits Drain Pumping Plants E&F Upgrades and transfer of works to KDD
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system throughout the district for improved automation and data acquisition
Overall cost of the projects is $16,878,000 with PL-566 funds covering 75% of the total. Construction for all of the projects is expected to take three years.
After the presentations, attendees talked to representatives from the NRCS, FCA, and KDD’s Manager.
KDD board member, Luther Horsley, thanking Greg Baker of the NRCS for taking time to visit the Klamath Basin and attend the meeting.
KDD landowner, Lynn Long, discussing the projects covered in the meeting with Raija Bushnell, FCA.
KDD Manager, Scott White, talking about KDD’s Infrastructure Modernization Project with meeting attendee.
The following week, on November 4th, KDD held another meeting in Dorris, CA, at the Butte Valley Community Center. Doors opened at 11 am, with guests being greeted with the aroma of lunch catered by Melissa’s Country Kitchen.
Scott White, KDD Manager, discussing the Klamath Reconnection project with meeting guests at the Butte Valley Community Center in Dorris, CA.
Though the Klamath Reconnection project has wide support from a variety of partners and stakeholders, KDD Manager, Scott White, wanted to ensure landowners and stakeholders neighboring the district were informed about reconnection details and that a key component of the project is to identify and secure sustainability for growers in the region.
Along with White, representatives from the Modoc Nation and the Klamath Basin Refuges were in attendance to answer questions about the Klamath Reconnection, its benefits, and potential challenges.
White opened the meeting with a brief history of the Klamath Drainage District and a discussion about KDD and its relationship with the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge. He recalled an older grower once telling him, “We need that refuge just as badly as that refuge needs us.”
The district manager went on to explain that when LKNWR goes dry, it causes a variety of problems for the district ranging from birds needing fields for habitat to water security. White also emphasized that the only way the reconnection project could move forward is that growers and landowners receive protection from the Endangered Species Act with salmon and sucker fish potentially swimming in the district’s canals.
The project has received $2 million for feasibility analysis of the concept. To date, there has been update LiDAR and sonar done in the region and the alternatives planning phase is currently underway.
Following White, Ken Sandusky, Homelands Project Manager for the Modoc Nation, discussed the microclimatic implications of the reconnection project as well as how it would benefit the ecosystem on the whole.
Ken Sandusky, Modoc Nation Homelands Project Manager, sharing projects being worked on by his crew.
The Modoc Nation has a 3,200 acre ranch bordering the southern end of LKNWR. According to Sandusky, the Modoc Homelands are the hardest hit when the refuge goes dry. While there’s a lot of focus on habitat on the Upper Basin, Sandusky sees the Modoc Homelands not receiving as much attention.
“You can’t sacrifice a huge landscape within the system and expect other restoration efforts to be successful,” said Sandusky. “Everything is interconnected.”
Sandusky also pointed out the microclimate benefits of getting water back on the Lower Klamath landscape. While the wetlands would suffer evaporation during the summer months, 60% of that water goes back into the local system. He also talked about the need for more management of public lands, with juniper removal being another way to free up water to a historically wet area.
Acting Klamath Basin Refuge Complex manager, Ken Griggs, spoke after Sandusky. Griggs opened his discussion by commenting that 50,000 acres of refuge habitat are “offline” with the exception of only a few units.
Ken Griggs, Acting Klamath Basin Refuge Complex Manager, told attendees how the Klamath Reconnection project will impact Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge.
“In our current state of affairs, we are not meeting our purpose or mission as America’s first waterfowl refuge,” stated the manager.
Griggs says now, the refuge is working with anyone they can to get water back on the landscape, reversing the management of previous refuge managers. They’re also looking at a more holistic approach to benefit the ecosystem and the greater good, versus the previous philosophy of single-species focused.
The last presentation was from John Vradenbug, supervisory biologist for the Klamath Basin Refuge Complex.
Vradenburg said the wetlands are telling us something has changed dramatically. Birds that once stopped in the Klamath Basin are now passing the region by, and the Klamath Reconnection project will get the landscape inline with how it’s been historically.
Though Vradenburg is optimistic about the benefits of the project, he discussed some of the unintended consequences, such as its effects on infrastructure, the need to ensure the water budget isn’t compromised, and asserted that KDD growers are protected.
John Vradenbug, Supervisory Biologist for the Klamath Basin Refuge Complex, talking with KDD landowner, Sam Henzel, about the Klamath Reconnection project.
“We tried to be really thoughtful in making sure we didn’t compromise the water budget – because that’s a stress. We wanted to make sure that we were always meeting this larger flow-through desire of nutrients and filtration,” said Vradenburg. “And we always wanted to keep with what Scott’s been hammering on – we cannot do any of this without protections on KDD because we are inviting endangered species onto our landscape.”
When Vradenburg’s discussion about the intricacies and effects of the Klamath Reconnection project finished, the panel took questions from the audience. Conversations following the presentation and Q&A were positive.
After the presentations, meeting attendees took advantage of being able to ask questions and have discussions about LKNWR and the Klamath Reconnection project.
The project has garnered support from Oregon and California as well as federal agencies, conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited, California Waterfowl Association, and Trout Unlimited; agricultural groups such as Family Water Alliance and Klamath Water Users Association; the Klamath Watershed Partnership, and Klamath Basin Tribes.
Other projects in the Klamath Project and around the Klamath Basin
Though these two meetings were about projects happening in KDD, there are several other habitat restoration projects happening in the Klamath Basin and on the Klamath Reclamation Project:
Agency-Barnes Wetlands Project – In a collaboration between the Klamath Tribes, Ducks Unlimited, and the United States Fish & Wildlife Service, over 14,000 acres of wetland for waterfowl and C’waam and Koptu habitat.
Sprague River Collaborative Restoration Project – Running through 2025, this Upper Basin Collaborative project’s goals are to restore 26 miles of tributary streams and rivers in the Upper Sprague River watershed; develop plans for instream and floodplain restoration on the mainstem Sprague River to improve the shallow groundwater table, enhance water quality and habitat for future watershed restoration; and lastly, create and implement an Agricultural Resiliency Toolbox (ART) that directly benefits participating landowners to emphasize a commitment to voluntary, incentive-based approaches to advance agricultural and environmental resiliency.
Tule Lake Flow Through Infrastructure Improvement – The flow-through project is aimed at increasing water availability for Klamath ag and also cleaning water before it goes to the Klamath River by pushing it through wetlands.
Lake Ewauna Restoration for the Benefit of People, Fish and Wildlife – On the shoreline of Lake Ewauna in downtown Klamath Falls, this project will restore and develop the wetlands in the area along with instream improvements to the Link River to benefit native fish populations as well as waterfowl.
Upper Williamson River Restoration – This is the second phase of a project to improve fish passage to over 26 miles of the upper Williamson River and reconnect wetlands and riparian areas in the Klamath Marsh National Wildlife Refuge.
Recently, the Oregonian published a letter from Mary Hayden of Oregon City about the conditions of the Tule Lake Wildlife Refuge and the potential avian botulism outbreak on the scale of 2020. In her letter, Ms. Hayden offered her thoughts on a solution – “cash out the farmers” and “give the water to the birds.”
Unfortunately, when it comes to Klamath Basin water issues, this is a popular, short-sighted reaction by those whose communities are not dependent upon Klamath ag.
Water flowing from KDD patrons to Unit 2 in the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge in May, 2024.
This way of thinking also doesn’t take into account the work and advocacy Klamath Basin family farmers and ranchers do on behalf of the birds of the Pacific Flyway or area wildlife. Nor does it appreciate the tangled political web of the power of the Federal government, the Endangered Species Act, or water rights that put these refuges last in line and create “paper droughts” affecting farmers and waterfowl alike.
The notion that Klamath ag is “watering the desert” while advocating for sending water to area refuges shows there’s a misunderstanding about the hydrology of the Klamath Basin. Before settlers came to the area, water flowed throughout the Klamath Basin and settled in low-lying areas creating a vast network of shallow lakes and marshlands between Tule Lake and Lower Klamath Lake. The first people of this area, the Modocs, hunted, fished, and gathered food in these marshlands and lakes.
When the Klamath Project was created, many of those areas were converted to rich farmland.
In our district, the Klamath Drainage District (KDD), 27,000 acres of marshland was converted to farmland, leaving over 80,000 acres of the original Lower Klamath Lake as the nation’s first waterfowl refuge. During spring and fall migration, our district provides habitat and food for birds traveling the Pacific Flyway.
The water sent to Unit 2 and Unit 3 on the Lower Klamath Wildlife Refuge encouraged species variation not seen in decades.
KDD has also been a partner with Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, sending much-needed water from the district to the refuge when other stakeholders and the Bureau of Reclamation refused to send water to these wetlands. KDD has worked with conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited and California Waterfowl on habitat restoration efforts as well as getting water to Lower Klamath.
KDD and the Klamath Water Users Association (KWUA) have been vocal supporters of the Klamath Basin Refuges, with KWUA sending a letter to the Bureau of Reclamation urging the Bureau to send water to the refuges to head off the impending avian botulism outbreak.
Even today, Tulelake Irrigation District and the Klamath Drainage District are working on plans that not only provide water to these historic refuges, but also send cleaner, cooler water down the Klamath River for salmon.
Potato harvest in Klamath Drainage District. Every dollar generated by Klamath Basin Ag is passed through the community nine times.
Regardless if Klamath Basin ag were cashed out at a fair price, this one-time payout would devastate our communities and the very people working diligently to preserve the refuges that includes a sustainable supply of water. Every dollar created by Klamath ag is passed through the community nine times, more than any other industry in our region. Thousands of workers would be unemployed, and businesses tangentially connected to agriculture would fold.
We haven’t even touched on the nation’s challenges surrounding the loss of farmland and farmers and its effects on national food security.
KDD and Klamath Basin family farmers and ranchers are allies to our refuges, not enemies. While it’s easier to demonize Klamath ag than to appreciate it, we recognize our future is directly tied to the Klamath Basin ecosystem. If Ms. Hayden is interested, we’d love for her to pay a visit to our district to learn more about the incredible work we and our partners are doing on behalf of the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge.
