The Forest Service Proposed Groundwater Directive

Transcription

1 The Forest Service Proposed Groundwater Directive Status, Intent, and Path Forward Christopher Carlson, PhD National Groundwater Program Leader USDA Forest Service Washington, DC Ground Water Protection Council/ National Rural Water Association Seattle, WA October 2014

2 Water - ground water, surface water and snow - will be key to many collaborative efforts around the country. - Gail Kimball, Chief State of the Agency, January 2008

3 Outline The proposed directive and its current status FS responsibilities The path forward Questions?

4 Why a Directive? Facing increasing requests for siting wells, water storage, minerals activities, and new litigation To better position the agency to be responsive to public needs for access to National Forest System lands for a variety of purposes that affect groundwater resources, while meeting the management and stewardship mandates for those lands established by Congress

5 What it is / What it is not Designed to provide a consistent and credible framework for addressing groundwater in agency operations and decision making Improve transparency and predictability Set the stage to be a better partner with states, tribes, and others within the agency s existing decision space Primarily clarifies existing policy and its application to groundwater; limited new policy Does not (and cannot legally) increase agency authority; only provides structure to existing authorities

6 Provisions of the Proposed Directive Explicitly recognizes the role of states in appropriating water and states, tribes, and in some states EPA in protecting water quality Requires FS decision makers to work cooperatively with those entities Improves efficient use by focusing on conservation and sustainability Increases inventory and monitoring, particularly of groundwater-dependent ecosystems Increases awareness within the agency and improves NEPA analyses and decision making

7 Key Provisions of Proposed Directive Assume groundwater and surface water are interconnected, unless demonstrated otherwise Evaluate cumulative effects of activities on groundwater resources Sustain, restore groundwater-dependent ecosystems Meter withdrawals from large wells Incorporate monitoring in select new and renewed special use permits

8 Timeline of the Proposed Directive Published on May 6, 2014, for a 90-day public comment period Public comment period extended twice until October 3, 2014 (for a total of 150 days) Total number of unique comment submittals through 9/30 exceeded 200 Comment submittals through 9/30 came from all over the country, with about 3/4 from western states

9 Forest Service and Water From the Organic Administration Act of 1897 through the Multiple Use-Sustained Yield and National Forest Management Acts of the 1960s and 1970s, Congress directed in nearly every relevant piece of legislation that the National Forests and Grasslands be managed at least in part for water, watersheds, or stream flows.

10 Purpose for Establishment or Acquisition of National Forest System Lands Organic Administration Act of 1897 public domain land set aside to secure favorable conditions of water flow and a continuous supply of timber Weeks Law of 1911 land purchase for navigable stream protection or timber production Clarke-McNary Act of 1924 land acquisition for stream-flow protection and timber production Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937 acquisition of damaged or non-productive agricultural lands, in part, to mitigate floods, conserve surface and subsurface moisture, and protect watersheds

11 Global Water Distribution ~5% of global water is fresh ~68% of that fresh water exists as groundwater

12 Forest Service as Land Manager National Forest System lands consist of 193 million acres of forests & grasslands located in 42 states and Puerto Rico.

13 Groundwater-Dependent Streams Fraction of Streamflow Attributed to Groundwater

14 Forest Service as Water Steward NFS lands are located in the source areas for many important rivers and local and regional aquifer systems. NFS lands are the largest source of municipal water in the US; serving over 66 million people in 3,400 communities in 33 states.

15 Percentage of State Populations Using Groundwater for Drinking Water Idaho 96% New Mexico 90% Nebraska 87% Florida 93% Mississippi 92% South Dakota 70% Wisconsin 70% Washington 62% Wyoming 57% Arkansas 53% Montana 52% North Carolina 50% 1995 data

16 Forest Service as Cleanup Facilitator NFS lands contain more than 38,000 abandoned or inactive mines and several hundred non-mining CERCLA cleanup sites

17 Forest Service as Service Provider FS operates over 3,400 public and non-public drinking water systems. FS operates over 17,000 pit/vault toilets and over 3,400 septic systems.

18 Example Activities on NFS Lands that May Affect Groundwater Resources Hardrock, Coal, Mineral Materials Mining Coalbed, Shale, and other Oil & Gas Activities Infrastructure Development Mine Reclamation Stream Restoration Special Use Activities

19 Key Concerns Raised to Date FS has a decision on use of NFS lands for water FS land management decisions can affect groundwater in situations where state decisions may be limited GW and SW are generally interconnected Use of the terms manage and management in the context of groundwater FS involvement in available state or local processes when decisions on non-federal land may affect NFS land Assert reserved rights where appropriate

20 Path Forward Comment processing and analysis through 2014 Continued outreach into early 2015 Developing responses to comments early 2015 Preparation of revised directive and associated information for Federal Register notice mid 2015

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