• The mission of Trout Unlimited is to conserve, protect, and restore North America’s cold-water fisheries and their watersheds.
• Tumalo Creek is one of the few cold-water sources for reducing temperatures and thus improving aquatic habitat in the Middle Deschutes.
• The City of Bend’s Bridge Creek Surface Water project will potentially increase diversions from high in the Tumalo watershed and not improve minimal irrigation season flows in the lower reach of Tumalo Creek.
• Alternative solutions for City of Bend water, which could increase flows in Tumalo Creek, improve connectivity to the Middle Deschutes, and improve aquatic habitat in the Middle Deschutes, have not been adequately evaluated.

II. Background

While the city has completed years of study and evaluation of the complex challenges facing city water systems, the challenges and possible solutions are dynamic.  They merit an open and questioning approach before irreversible investments are made.  Recent city statements that the Final Selection of Project is closed and no longer a subject for city consideration, and that current city efforts are focused on implementing this project, are not acceptable. The process to date has lacked customary independent peer review, adequate comparisons to options without hydropower constraints, and open public hearings.

Information that has come to light in recent months raises questions as to the basic rationale used for the Final Selection of Project in September of 2009.  Those assumptions included:

Growth rate in water use will be 70% in 10 years, to a final capacity >300% of current use rate.  Capacity must meet maximum daily demand, which occurs on approximately 5 days each summer.  It was concluded also that user conservation programs would not significantly change this maximum demand parameter.

Hydropower was to be part of project.

Bridge Creek diversion can increase to 36 cubic feet per second (cfs).  This parameter was recently dropped to 21 cfs (Optimatics report Feb 2011). Historic diversion has been limited to ~12 cfs during summer due to water right priorities.

Increased public awareness of project details has led to challenges to city evaluation processes and decisions to date. Significant additional information has become available through the panel discussion hosted by OSU-Cascades (Talk of the Town, Jan 31, 2011, COTV 11), the Draft Water Management and Conservation Plan City of Bend (GSI Water Solutions Inc, January 2011), the Updated City Water Master Plan (Optimatics, Feb 2011) and the Value Engineering Report (RSRI, March 2011).

III. Additional Deschutes Chapter of TU concerns include but are not limited to:

• Debatable conclusions of the economic analyses used to favor surface water investment over ground water system alternatives
• Reality of water use growth projections
• Economic payback for hydro investment
• Other features of the Bridge Creek project such as choice of filtration technology
• Unaccounted costs and risks for the surface water project
• Need to develop ground water systems even if Bridge Creek project is completed.  In fact, this perspective can cast the Bridge Creek capacity as redundant to the ground water system.
• Accuracy of conclusions regarding benefits of water use conservation
• Evaluation of options for EPA water treatment requirements
• Interpretation of consequences of in-stream leasing of surface water rights
• Failure to value the cold water resource of the Tumalo Creek system
• Other potential solutions and issues will merit consideration as well if re-evaluation of the Bridge Creek projection is undertaken.
• Re-evaluation is called for before a capital investment of $58 million or more, with $50 million in finance and interest costs, is irreversibly invested in a project with these significant uncertainties.

IV. Motions Passed

1. The Deschutes Chapter of Trout Unlimited endorses efforts to restore flows and connectivity of Tumalo Creek and the Middle Deschutes River.
2. The Deschutes Chapter of TU recommends independent review of the City of Bend’s Bridge Creek surface water project.  Such review should include, at a minimum, economic comparisons for surface and ground water system development, options for in-stream leasing of surface water rights, and proper valuation of water for in-stream uses.
3. The Deschutes Chapter TU recommends continued efforts by all parties to restore cold-water flows to promote improved aquatic habitat in the Middle Deschutes.

Michael Tripp
Conservation Chair
Deschutes Chapter of Trout Unlimited