State will enforce Klamath Tribes’ water rights

Published 2:29 pm Monday, March 15, 2021

The Oregon Water Resources Department announced Friday that it will continue to enforce the Klamath Tribes’ water rights until a judge orders otherwise.

The Klamath Tribes maintain senior water rights in the Klamath Basin, which were affirmed by the Klamath County Circuit Court last month, but Judge Cameron Wogan wrote in his proposed order that those rights need to be re-quantified.

Until the court issues a final order to that effect this spring, the water resources department said it would continue enforcing requests in accordance with the the tribes’ water rights, which grant them instream flows in the Williamson, Sprague and Wood River basins, all of which are tributaries to Upper Klamath Lake. The Tribes regularly make calls on that water to support fish during dry periods.

In a news release, the water resources department said it expects the court’s final order would provide further direction on how the department should proceed with enforcing the tribes’ claims.

The department said tribes made a call for water on March 1 of this year, and that the Klamath Basin watermaster determined that those instream flows are currently being met in the Wood River, but not in the Williamson and Sprague rivers.

“Accordingly, the watermaster expects to begin issuing regulation orders next week requiring the shut off of junior water users in the Upper Klamath Basin on the Williamson and Sprague river systems,” the release read.