WRIA1 INTEGRATED PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

Transcription

1 WRIA1 INTEGRATED PROGRAM MANAGEMENT WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Bellingham Blaine Everson Ferndale Lynden Nooksack Sumas Whatcom County Public Utility District No. 1 of Whatcom County Lummi Nation Nooksack Indian Tribe Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Date: December 5, 2018 Time: 1:30pm-3:30pm Place: Garden Room, Civic Center Building, 322 N. Commercial, Bellingham 1:30pm 1:45pm 1. Call to Order/Introductions 2. Public Comment 3. Review Agenda/Additional Business 4. Approve November 14, 2018 Meeting Draft Summary 1:45pm 3:15pm Discussion 5. Streamflow Restoration Act (ESSB 6091) Plan Update AGENDA Outcome: Information; Discussion; Identify Areas of Agreement; Decision Review Decision-Making Process for Plan Update Plan Update Status Review of Policy Package and Discussions Decision on Policy Package 3:15pm 3:30pm Other Business Adjourn 3:30pm Next Meeting: January 10, :30-3:00pm, Garden Room, Civic Center Building, 322 N. Commercial

2 WRIA 1 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING SUMMARY NOVEMBER 14, 2018 Date: November 14, 2018 Time: 9:30 a.m. 11:00 a.m. Place: Fireplace Meeting Room, Bellingham Municipal Court Building, 625 Halleck St., Bellingham 1. Call to Order/Introductions 2. Public Comment 3. Review Agenda/Additional Business 4. Approve Meeting Summary 5. Streamflow Restoration Act (ESSB 6091) Policy Issues 6. Other Business Adjourn MEETING ATTENDANCE (BASED ON SIGN-IN SHEET) WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Members Merle Jefferson, Lummi Nation Ross Cline, Nooksack Indian Tribe Mayor Kelli Linville, City of Bellingham Executive Jack Louws, Whatcom County Steve Jilk, Public Utility District No. 1 Amy Windrope, WDFW Region 4 Director WRIA 1 Management Team Members: Gary MacWilliams, Nooksack Indian Tribe Renee LaCroix, City of Bellingham Clare Fogelsong, City of Bellingham Mark Personius, Whatcom County PDS Gary Stoyka, Whatcom County Public Works Staff Team Members: Rebecca Schlotterback, PUD No. 1 Kasey Cykler, Dept. of Ecology Heather Good, Whatcom County Public Works Treva Coe, Nooksack Indian Tribe Natural Resources Oliver Grah, Nooksack Indian Tribe Natural Resources Joel Ingram, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Kara Kuhlman, Lummi Nation Natural Resources Andy Ross, Lummi Nation Natural Resources Other Attendees: Leroy Deardorff, Lummi Nation George Swanaset, Jr., Nooksack Indian Tribe Frank Lawrence III, Lummi Nation Natural Resources November 14, DRAFT

3 WRIA 1 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING SUMMARY NOVEMBER 14, 2018 Satpal Sidhu, Whatcom County Council Tyler Schroeder, Whatcom County Carole Perry, Citizen Max Perry, Forestry and Private Well Owners Caucus Dave Onkels, Land Development Caucus Henry Bierlink, Ag Water Board Eric Hirst, Citizen John Mercer, Non-Government Water Systems Caucus Karlee Deatherage, RE Sources for Sustainable Connections Becky Peterson, Geneva Consulting DOCUMENTS DISTRIBUTED November 14, 2018 WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting Agenda Draft WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting Summary August 1, 2018 Brief Sheet Agenda Item #5 Policy Discussion-Streamflow Restoration Act City of Bellingham Letter RE Policy Issues (Handout) WDFW Streamflow Restoration Offset and Funding Risk Flowchart (Handout) 1. Call to Order/Introductions The meeting was called to order by Whatcom County Executive Jack Louws. 2. Public Comment Eric Hirst provided comment on the 6091 process and that water use efficiency should be included in more detail and address efficiency in agricultural practices. Max Perry provided comment that the 6091 process is intended to address private wells, and reported that the Planning Unit has made progress on policy discussions. Alan Chapman identified a concern of the Fishers Caucus, which is that the Streamflow Restoration Act is intended to address future domestic wells and the local update should be limited to the intent of the Act. 3. Review Agenda/Additional Business There were no changes to the agenda. 4. Approval of Meeting Summary It was noted that under Staff Team members present, Oliver Grah with the Nooksack Indian Tribe Natural Resources, should be listed as present at the August meeting. The August 1, 2018 meeting summary was approved with the correction to the attendance. 5. Streamflow Restoration Act (ESSB 6091) 1 Policy Issues Gary Stoyka, WCPW, presented an overview of the local Watershed Management Plan Update process for addressing ESSB The overview included: 1 The Streamflow Restoration Act information and link to legislation can be found at the Dept. of Ecology website ( November 14, DRAFT

4 WRIA 1 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING SUMMARY NOVEMBER 14, 2018 o The outline for the content of the Watershed Management Plan Update o A detailed schedule to complete and approve the local Plan Update in order to submit it to the Department of Ecology by January 16, 2019 for their review and adoption by February 1, o The three policy issues under discussion that are being considered in the drafting of the Plan Update, which are withdrawal limits, fees, and metering. Withdrawal limits and fees are currently identified in the 6091 legislation as 3,000 gallons per day annual average per connection and $500 one-time fee ($150 to Whatcom County and $350 to Dept. of Ecology). If there are changes to fees or withdrawal limits, they must be part of the Plan Update that is locally approved for adoption by Ecology by February 1 st because it will need to go through Ecology s rule-making process. o Planning Unit s preliminary proposal for the policy issues to retain the withdrawal limit and fee as identified in the legislation, and develop a voluntary program for metering and incorporate aerial photo analysis into the monitoring and adaptive management plan for purposes of monitoring outdoor water use. o Treva Coe, Nooksack Indian Tribe Natural Resources, presented summary slides of technical staff analysis to evaluate the cumulative impact of consumptive use and projects in the context of stream flows. Amy Windrope, WDFW, distributed a diagram to help conceptualize the policies issues. The diagram illustrated that the risk to the resource is increased with uncertainties associated with assumptions related to growth, water use, and funding. Policies that address sustainable funding, project success, and water use can help move the balance from the increased risk end of the spectrum to the increased certainty end. Merle Jefferson, Lummi Nation, referred to the letter they submitted that outlines their concerns, which includes the Tribe s senior water rights. There is also concerned with the 3000 gpd/annual average water use, not having meters to measure use and provide accountability, and the fees are not sufficient to cover the costs associated with implementing a plan. Ross Cline and Gary MacWilliams, Nooksack Indian Tribe, spoke to the significance of the fisheries to the Tribes and outlined their positions on the policy issues of concern including interest in having mandatory metering to measure water use, fees sufficient to cover the cost of the program, and lower water use limits. Additionally, there should be an increase in the amount of the required offset (e.g., a percent increase over the calculated offset). Mayor Linville, City of Bellingham, distributed a letter outlining policy issues of concern. Generally, metering, whether mandatory or incentive-based voluntary, is important for helping to determine impact, fees should cover costs of the program, and the current water use limits of 3000 gpd annual average and 5000 gpd maximum should be lowered. Steve Jilk, PUD No. 1, noted that the legislation refers to impact on streams and impact may be broader than just stream flows. The technical work conducted by the technical staff at Nooksack and Lummi Tribes provide a tool that can support future evaluation of impacts on a stream by stream basis. There is not enough time in the short term to do everything we want to do now. The long term goal is to make sure that implementation of the Salmon Recovery Plan and the Watershed Management Plan (WMP) dove-tail with the WMP Update for At the Planning Unit, the PUD has voted with what he thinks he can recommend to the PUD Commission. November 14, DRAFT

5 WRIA 1 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING SUMMARY NOVEMBER 14, 2018 Whatcom County Executive Louws expressed interest in finding a path for agreement on policy issues that will result in an approved local Plan Update by January 16th to forward to Ecology. The goal for the agreement is one that address interests of both the Initiating Governments and the Planning Unit, which means the different parties may need to consider how they can modify positions in order to find a path forward for the 6091 update. Initiating Government staff should work on finding positions that can be agreed to by the participants. In response to a request for clarification on the level of detail required by the Department of Ecology to approve a plan update, Kasey Cykler, Dept. of Ecology, noted that the updates need to address the elements described in the legislation. There is not an obligation to address the policy issues of water use allocation, fees, and meters. However, if there is interest in changing either the fees or the water use allocation from what is currently allowable in the legislation, those changes will need to be included in the Plan Update that is approved and forwarded to Ecology for adoption by February 1 st. If a plan is not approved and forwarded to Ecology by February 1, the process goes to Ecology for rulemaking. If it goes to rule-making, it is a state-wide process and all comments and input are accepted and considered. The PUD noted that if the situation arises where WRIA 1 does not meet the deadline for an adopted plan update, it should not mean that the process to address the issues stops. The WRIA 1 Watershed Management Plan and WRIA 1 Salmon Recovery Plan still need to be implemented, and the elements that were intended to be addressed with 6091 are related. There was discussion of the Planning Unit s preliminary policy package that addressed water use, fees, and metering. It was noted that the positions of the Planning Unit are substantially different than the positions that have been outlined by the Tribes and City, and the question was asked whether there are opportunities to bridge the gap. Executive Louws recapped the positions of the Initiating Governments and the position of the Planning Unit on the topics of fees, water use limits, and metering, and asked that the management staff of the Initiating Governments work on areas where there may be opportunities to compromise that can be brought back to the WRIA 1 Board and Planning Unit. Gary Stoyka will convey to the Planning Unit that the preliminary policy package is not supported by some of the Initiating Governments at this time, especially the water use limits and the topic of metering. 6. Other Business - None Meeting adjourned 11:10am. November 14, DRAFT

6 WRIA 1 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT BOARD MEETING SUMMARY NOVEMBER 14, 2018 Agenda Approvals and Agreements Item 4 The August 1, 2018 meeting summary was approved with the correction to the attendance. November 14, DRAFT

7 Supporting Material for December 5, 2018 WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting Excerpt from 2016 Interlocal Agreement Fishery Co-Managers Caucus. Parties to this agreement that are members of the Fishery Co-Managers caucus include the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, and Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). The Fishery Co-Managers caucus will designate a representative to serve as a co-chair of the Board and must represent the caucus position on matters before the Board. The Fishery Co-Managers caucus will determine its own operating procedures. Local Government Caucus. Parties to this agreement that are members of the Local Government caucus include Whatcom County and the cities of Bellingham, Blaine, Everson, Ferndale, Lynden, Nooksack and Sumas. The PUD No. 1, as an Initiating Government for Watershed Planning and a signatory to this Agreement is a member of the Local Government caucus for purposes of decision-making. For matters pertaining to all projects or programs within or otherwise affecting any portion of WRIA 1 located within Skagit County, a representative delegated by the Skagit County Board of Commissioners may be invited to participate in the Local Government Caucus during its deliberation and formulation of a position for the topic under discussion. The Local Government caucus will designate a representative to serve as a co-chair of the Board and must represent the caucus position on matters before the Board. The Local Government caucus will determine its own operating procedures. Discussions, Decision-Making and other Actions by the Board. The process of the WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board is supported by designated teams and work groups as described in Exhibit A. The structure and decision-making process for the Board is described below. 1. All members of the Board and their staff may speak during agenda matters being discussed by the Board representatives. Individuals other than Board members attending a meeting of the Board may participate in agenda discussions only if the Board determines the matter is open to direct participation by others. 2. Affirmative action or decision by the Board requires a consensus of all parties attending or the agreement of both caucus representatives. Page 1 of 2

8 Supporting Material for December 5, 2018 WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting Excerpts from RCW (4)(a) In collaboration with the planning unit, the initiating governments must update the watershed plan to include recommendations for projects and actions that will measure, protect, and enhance instream resources and improve watershed functions that support the recovery of threatened and endangered salmonids. Watershed plan recommendations may include, but are not limited to, acquiring senior water rights, water conservation, water reuse, stream gaging, groundwater monitoring, and developing natural and constructed infrastructure, which includes, but is not limited to, such projects as floodplain restoration, off-channel storage, and aquifer recharge. Qualifying projects must be specifically designed to enhance streamflows and not result in negative impacts to ecological functions or critical habitat. (b) At a minimum, the watershed plan must include those actions that the planning units determine to be necessary to offset potential impacts to instream flows associated with permit-exempt domestic water use. The highest priority recommendations must include replacing the quantity of consumptive water use during the same time as the impact and in the same basin or tributary. Lower priority projects include projects not in the same basin or tributary and projects that replace consumptive water supply impacts only during critical flow periods. The watershed plan may include projects that protect or improve instream resources without replacing the consumptive quantity of water where such projects are in addition to those actions that the planning unit determines to be necessary to offset potential consumptive impacts to instream flows associated with permit-exempt domestic water use. (c) Prior to adoption of the updated watershed plan, the department must determine that actions identified in the watershed plan, after accounting for new projected uses of water over the subsequent twenty years, will result in a net ecological benefit to instream resources within the water resource inventory area. (7)(a) If a watershed plan that meets the requirements of this section is not adopted in water resource inventory area 1 (Nooksack) by February 1, 2019, the department must adopt rules for that water resource inventory area that meet the requirements of this section by August 1, Page 2 of 2

9 Initiating Governments Compromise Discussions November 30, Develop Tiered Structure DGWPE well owners could select one of the following tiers: Tier Type 1 Metering 2 Withdrawal Limit Offset Fee 1 No Outdoor Usage Required 350 gpd 150% of the consumptive portion of 350 gpd 2 No Outdoor Usage Not required 350 gpd 150% of the consumptive portion of 350 gpd Required 950 gpd Use RH2 Scenario 4-4 to Not required 3,000 or 5,000 gpd 150% of the consumptive 3 Outdoor Usage Allowed 1 start, then 150% of the consumptive portion based on metering data 4 Outdoor Usage Allowed 1 portion of 3,000 gpd Lowest Fee Low Fee Medium Fee High Fee 2. Fees would include one-time permit fees and annual fees. 3. Plan update would remove conclusions related to NEB and commit to a 1-year time-frame for doing more detailed analysis which would be incorporated into the process through adaptive management. 1 Outdoor Usage could be restricted during drought conditions. 2 Meters would be read no more often than monthly during the dry season. Supporting Document for December 5, 2018 WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting

10 Supporting Document for December 5, 2018 WRIA 1 Watershed Management Board Meeting Summary of WMP Update Positions Metering Lummi Nation Nooksack Indian Tribe City of Bellingham Required Required Required Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Required Whatcom County Public Utility District No. 1 WRIA 1 Planning Unit Voluntary with incentives Voluntary Voluntary Accountability Enforcement Water utility To determine offsets Enforcement To determine offsets Quantify by reach Random reading To determine offsets along with data from 6091 pilot projects Add to other pilot projects To determine offsets Quantify by sub-basin Metering on case-by-case Withdrawal Limit Fees 350 gpd Pay for more with upper limit Develop a Water utility to assess annual fees including those for water use above 350 gpd 500 gpd Agree w/ Lummi proposal Negotiable Net Ecological Benefit Spatial and temporal concerns Spatial and temporal concerns 300 gpd annual average Position not identified Negotiable Equitable to benefits received No position; prefer in-time and in-place Offset >150% of 350 gpd or meter 150% of Consumptive at least commensurate with use Possibly during dry season Position not identified Concerns w/ O&M and longterm funding Spatial and temporal concerns 1,500 gpd or 950 gpd 1,500 gpd 3,000 gpd maximum annual average $500 w/ meter $500 $500 $2,000 w/ out meter Use current information for determinations now; commit to more detailed analysis Spatial and temporal concerns; more analysis needed No official position, but some members writing new NEB equal to consumptive 125% to 150% 150% of limit, consumptive RH2 Option 4/Scenario 4