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WASHINGTON : 

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing Office

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21–987 2018

S. HRG. 114–495 

PENDING LEGISLATION 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON WATER AND POWER 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON 

ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED FOURTEENTH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION 

S. 2524 

S. 2533 

S. 2616 

S. 2902 

S. 2907 

MAY 17, 2016 

( 

Printed for the use of the 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.fdsys.gov 


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COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES 

LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska, Chairman 

JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming 

JAMES E. RISCH, Idaho 

MIKE LEE, Utah 

JEFF FLAKE, Arizona 

STEVE DAINES, Montana 

BILL CASSIDY, Louisiana 

CORY GARDNER, Colorado 

ROB PORTMAN, Ohio 

JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota 

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee 

SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia 

MARIA CANTWELL, Washington 

RON WYDEN, Oregon 

BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont 

DEBBIE STABENOW, Michigan 

AL FRANKEN, Minnesota 

JOE MANCHIN III, West Virginia 

MARTIN HEINRICH, New Mexico 

MAZIE K. HIRONO, Hawaii 

ANGUS S. KING, JR., Maine 

ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON WATER AND POWER

MIKE LEE, Chairman 

JEFF FLAKE 

JOHN BARRASSO 

JAMES E. RISCH 

STEVE DAINES 

CORY GARDNER 

ROB PORTMAN 

MAZIE K. HIRONO 

RON WYDEN 

BERNARD SANDERS 

AL FRANKEN 

JOE MANCHIN III 

ANGUS S. KING, JR. 

COLIN HAYES, Staff Director 

PATRICK J. MCCORMICK III, Chief Counsel 

CHRISTOPHER KEARNEY, Budget Analyst and Senior Professional Staff Member 

ANGELA BECKER-DIPPMANN, Democratic Staff Director 

SAM E. FOWLER, Democratic Chief Counsel 

MELANIE STANSBURY, Democratic Professional Staff Member 


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C O N T E N T S 

OPENING STATEMENTS 

Page 

Lee, Hon. Mike, Subcommittee Chairman and a U.S. Senator from Utah ......... 1 

Wyden, Hon. Ron, a U.S. Senator from Oregon .................................................... 2 

WITNESSES 

Feinstein, Hon. Dianne, a U.S. Senator from California ...................................... 3 

McCain, Hon. John, a U.S. Senator from Arizona ................................................ 140 

Lopez, Hon. Estevan, Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior ............................................................................................. 142 

Weldon, Leslie, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture ............................................................................................................ 159 

Quinn, Dr. Timothy, Executive Director, Association of California Water 

Agencies ................................................................................................................ 167 

Keppen, Dan, Executive Director, Family Farm Alliance .................................... 175 

Long, Bill, President, Board of Directors, Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District .................................................................................................. 188 

Buschatzke, Thomas, Director, Arizona Department of Water Resources .......... 199 

Ziemer, Laura, Senior Counsel and Water Policy Advisor, Trout Unlimited ..... 209 

ALPHABETICAL LISTING AND APPENDIX MATERIAL SUBMITTED 

Alameda County Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 105 

Alameda County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, Zone 7: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 107 

Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 265 

American Bird Conservancy, et al.: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 267 

American Rivers: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 271 

American Rivers, et al.: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 274 

American Sportfishing Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 276 

Association of California Water Agencies: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 104 

Bennet, Hon. Michael: 

Statement for the Record ................................................................................. 278 

Buschatzke, Thomas: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 199 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 201 


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IV 

CalChamber Advocacy: 

Article entitled ‘‘CalChamber Backs Renewed Effort on Federal Water 

Bill’’ dated February 26, 2016 ...................................................................... 118 

California Citrus Mutual: 

Press Release dated February 10, 2016 .......................................................... 116 

California Farm Bureau Federation: 

Press Release dated February 10, 2016 .......................................................... 115 

California Fresh Fruit Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 102 

California Natural Resources Agency: 

Press Release dated February 10, 2016 .......................................................... 114 

California Water Service: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 98 

Central Contra Costa Sanitary District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 96 

City of Benicia (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 94 

City of Indio (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 92 

City of Palo Alto (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 90 

City of Pismo Beach (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 89 

City of Pleasanton (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 88 

City of San Buenaventura (Ventura) Water Department: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 82 

City of San Diego (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 86 

City of South Gate (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 85 

City of Turlock (California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 83 

Coachella Valley Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 80 

Coastal Trollers Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 281 

Colorado River Board of California: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 283 

Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Department of Natural Resources: 

Statement for the Record ................................................................................. 190 

Costa, Hon. Jim: 

Press Release dated February 10, 2016 .......................................................... 112 

Cucamonga Valley Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 79 

Delta Diablo: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 78 

Desert Water Agency: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 77 

Dublin San Ramon Services District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 75 

Ducks Unlimited, et al.: 

Letter for the Record dated February 5, 2016 ............................................... 71 

Letter for the Record dated May 12, 2016 ...................................................... 73 


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V 

East Bay Municipal Utility District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 70 

Eastern Municipal Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 69 

Feinstein, Hon. Dianne: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 3 

Chart entitled ‘‘5 years of California drought’’ ............................................... 4 

California Long-Term Provisions for Water Supply and Short-Term Provisions for Emergency Drought Relief Act (S. 2533): 

Support for S. 2533—List of Letters, Press Releases and Op-Eds ........ 6 

Water Supply Increase and Improvement Provisions ............................ 124 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 129 

Garamendi, Hon. John, et al.: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 9 

Garamendi, Hon. John: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 11 

Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 67 

GoldenGate Salmon Association: 

Initial Analysis of S. 2533 ................................................................................ 286 

Goleta Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 65 

Indio Water Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 64 

International Union of Operating Engineers: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 63 

Irvine Ranch Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 62 

Keppen, Dan: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 175 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 177 

Responses to Questions for the Record ........................................................... 253 

Las Virgenes Municipal Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 61 

Las Virgenes—Triunfo Joint Powers Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 60 

League of California Cities: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 59 

Lee, Hon. Mike: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 1 

Long, Bill: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 188 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 194 

Lopez, Hon. Estevan: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 142 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 144 

Responses to Questions for the Record ........................................................... 242 

Mape’s Ranch and Lyons’ Investments: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 121 

McCain, Hon. John: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 140 

Merced County Association of Governments: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 56 

(The) Metropolitan Water District of Southern California: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 12 


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VI 

Monterey County Board of Supervisors: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 54 

Monterey County Water Resources Agency: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 52 

Monterey Peninsula Water Management District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 51 

Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 49 

North Bay Water Reuse Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 47 

Northern California Water Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 45 

Orange County Sanitation District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 44 

Orange County Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 43 

Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 288 

Pacific Fishery Management Council: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 291 

Quinn, Dr. Timothy: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 167 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 169 

Responses to Questions for the Record ........................................................... 250 

Reclamation District 108 (Grimes, California): 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 41 

Redwood City, California: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 40 

Rincon Water: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 38 

San Diego County Water Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 36 

San Joaquin Valley Water Infrastructure Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 34 

San Jose Water Company: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 32 

Santa Clara Valley Water District: 

Letter for the Record dated January 22, 2016 ............................................... 27 

Letter for the Record dated April 8, 2016 ...................................................... 29 

Sonoma County Water Agency: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 295 

Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 25 

Valley Industry and Commerce Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 24 

Valley Sanitary District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 22 

Victor Valley Wastewater Reclamation Authority: 

Letter for the Record dated February 8, 2016 ............................................... 20 

Letter for the Record dated February 24, 2016 ............................................. 21 

Walnut Valley Water District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 19 

Water Agencies: 

Press Release dated February 10, 2016 .......................................................... 110 


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VII 

Water Replenishment District of Southern California: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 18 

Weldon, Leslie: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 159 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 161 

Responses to Questions for the Record ........................................................... 247 

West Bay Sanitary District: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 16 

West Coast Salmon Fishing Industry and Related Businesses: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 297 

Western Governors’ Association: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 219 

Western Growers: 

Press Release for the Record ........................................................................... 108 

Western Municipal Water District’s Board of Directors: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 15 

Western Recycled Water Coalition, et al.: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 100 

(The) Wilderness Society: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 303 

Wyden, Hon. Ron: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 2 

Yuba County Water Agency: 

Letter for the Record ........................................................................................ 13 

Ziemer, Laura: 

Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 209 

Written Testimony ............................................................................................ 211 

Supplemental Testimony and Responses to Questions for the Record ........ 260 

The text for each of the bills which were addressed in this subcommittee hearing can 

be found on the committee’s website at: https://www.energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/ 

hearings-and-business-meetings?ID=A7AE5EAB-EB16-4CAF-A918-68A1A5D5BEB7. 


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(1) 

PENDING LEGISLATION 

TUESDAY, MAY 17, 2016 

U.S. SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON WATER AND POWER, COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES, Washington, DC. 

The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:13 p.m. in Room 

SD–366, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Mike Lee, Chairman 

of the Subcommittee, presiding. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. MIKE LEE, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM UTAH 

Senator LEE. Welcome. It is a pleasure to have you here—form 

the basis of a drought legislation package aimed at California and 

at various other Western States. 

Although the final details of the legislative package remain in 

flux, I would like to highlight two concerns that are most important 

to my home State of Utah. First, any drought bill must be fully 

paid for. Two, it must contain the protections provided in the 

Water Rights Protection Act. I will discuss each of these in turn 

briefly. 

A little over a year ago, the U.S. Department of Agriculture designated Sanpete County in central Utah as a primary natural disaster area due to damages and losses caused by the recent drought. 

Farmers and ranchers in Carbon, Emery, Juab, Millard, Sevier, 

and Utah Counties also qualify for natural disaster assistance. 

I know Utah is not alone in fighting drought. California, New 

Mexico, Wyoming, Arizona, and Colorado are also dealing with 

similar problems, but simply because the drought crisis exists and 

is painful does not mean that it should be used to expand federal 

obligations, or at least to do so irresponsibly. Any new or expanded 

government spending authorization should be offset with Bureau of 

Reclamation prepayment revenue or spending reductions. 

We have a saying of the West: Water is for fighting. A hundred 

years ago, water disputes sometimes ended in bloodshed, now they 

end in years of litigation. 

It is precisely because of these tensions that federal regulators 

should be prohibited from blackmailing state and private water 

users into relinquishing their water rights. 

In 2014, the Forest Service proposed a new regulation that would 

require water rights to be transferred to the Federal Government 

as a condition for obtaining permits needed to operate 121 ski resorts across federal lands. Later, the Forest Service wisely withdrew this regulation. 


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Included in S. 2902 is language that would protect state-issued 

water rights by prohibiting the Departments of Interior and Agriculture from requiring a transfer or limitation of water rights as 

a condition precedent for obtaining a permit to use federal land. 

Senator Wyden. 

STATEMENT OF HON. RON WYDEN, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM OREGON 

Senator WYDEN. Thank you very much, Senator Lee. 

We are glad to have our witnesses here today. 

Suffice it to say, what this is about is we are facing a water 

emergency in the West. Last year, the American West experienced 

an unprecedented drought with record-breaking temperatures and 

low snow pack and rainfall. This drought impacted communities. It 

impacted agriculture, industry, wildlife, and the environment. 

Conditions may be a bit better now with El Nino, but we are still 

stuck in the proverbial woods because conditions are expected to 

continue throughout much of the West in coming years. As a result, 

communities across the country face significant water security 

shortages and are trying to respond to these dwindling supplies. 

Managing our water resources for the future means developing 

smart and collaborative solutions that help people and the environment. Creative approaches that can end water wars and empower 

communities on the ground are like those in the Klamath Basin in 

my home state and the Yakima Basin in Washington. 

In Oregon, we have experienced drought disasters for several 

years now, and we are gearing up for another dry year. Extreme 

drought conditions impact farming, ranching, fish, wildlife, and 

wildfire. 

Chair Murkowski and the Ranking Member, Senator Cantwell, 

are working together to look for ways—and I think Senator McCain 

and Senator Feinstein know about this—to also better fund prevention of fire and make existing dollars stretch further than we have 

in the past. 

With the traditional big recreation season about to begin, I would 

also like to note that drought significantly limits opportunities for 

people to get outside, recreate, and enjoy the West and boost our 

recreation economy. You cannot paddle down a river when there is 

barely enough water to float a kayak, and you cannot hike through 

a forest when the dry conditions have sparked a wildfire. 

The recreation economy has the potential to be a major economic 

engine throughout the West. I recently introduced legislation, the 

RNR bill, which stands for Recreation, Not Red-Tape. Because we 

have witnesses here today, I will be talking more about that later 

this week. 

The problems in the Klamath Basin are especially on my mind 

today because they have been made worse by years of dry conditions that decrease supply and increase the tensions, but we were 

able to get a diverse group of community leaders together to find 

a sustainable solution and we are in a position now where we can 

turn a corner and start making real progress. 

The work that groups like Trout Unlimited and the Family Farm 

Alliance have done in the Klamath Basin is commendable. I bring 

this up simply by way of saying that these collaborative coalitions, 


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and you see them around the country, they are doing the heavy 

lifting, but they can and do work. The Klamath Basin, in fact, 

proves that that is the case. 

I have had a number of conversations with my colleague and 

friend, Senator Feinstein, because she has been doing yeoman’s 

work trying to make sure that the water challenges in California 

are dealt with. Her bill to address the drought is of special interest 

to our state for a variety of reasons, but one that I have not really 

learned about until recently is the potential impact on the health 

and sustainability of Oregon and Northwest salmon fisheries. I am 

looking forward to getting more information on those issues in the 

days ahead so that I can work closely with Senator Feinstein and 

our colleagues to make sure that Oregon fisheries will be able to 

benefit from drought management decisions that are made in California, number one, and that we avoid negative impacts on our 

fisheries. 

Let me close with one last point. Having worked with Senator 

Feinstein and Senator McCain on a lot of these natural resource 

issues in the past, I think we understand that nobody gets everything they want when you are dealing with tough resources issues. 

Nobody gets everything they believe they ought to have. The question is, can you get enough in order to strike a balance between the 

various interests that we all care about? 

I look forward very much to working with Senator Feinstein and 

Senator McCain, because we have traveled those roads before, and 

we have been able to navigate tough resources issues because we 

built around those kinds of principles. I look forward to our witnesses and working with both of them. 

Senator LEE. Thank you, Senator Wyden. 

We have two panels of witnesses today. Our first panel consists 

of Senator Feinstein from California and Senator McCain from Arizona. We will hear from each of them now. 

Senator Feinstein, we will start with you. 

STATEMENT OF HON. DIANNE FEINSTEIN, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA 

Senator FEINSTEIN. Thanks very much, Mr. Chairman, Senator 

Wyden, and Senator Manchin. Thank you very much for this opportunity. 

I would like to mention that there is a gentleman sitting behind 

me who is going to testify on the next panel. He is Tim Quinn. He 

is the Executive Director of the Association of California Water 

Agencies. They represent 430 public agencies. They are responsible 

for 90 percent of the water delivered throughout California. I think 

he brings an important perspective. 

Despite this most recent El Nino, California still faces severe 

drought conditions now going on five consecutive years. A picture 

is worth a thousand words. 

[The information referred to follows:] 


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If you look at this chart, and maybe if you tilt it just a little bit 

this way, you will see how dry California has been every week 

since the drought began in 2010. It shows the drought’s progression 

from abnormally dry conditions in yellow, to severe drought in orange, and to extreme drought in red, and finally exceptional 

drought in the dark red color. I think it says it all. 

The sustained presence of exceptional drought, the most severe 

category since 2014, is alarming and illustrates California’s emergency situation. This is also highlighted by our inadequate infrastructure. 

I think most people do not realize that the two big water conveyance projects, the Central Valley Project and the State Water 

Project—the State Water Project was built for the cities and the 

other project was built essentially by farmers for farmers. It was 

designed when California was 16 million people. Well, we are now 

40-plus million people, and the infrastructure has not been significantly expanded. 

So this bill is the product of two years of work, 28 drafts, 43 

amendments to the last draft. It has been circulated to Republicans, Democrats, environmental groups, water districts, cities, 

rural communities, fishermen, and farmers. 

I would like to add to the record, if I may, Mr. Chairman, letters 

of 104 agencies and individuals throughout the state supporting 

the bill you have before you. 

[The information referred to follows:] 


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The House has passed a bill that I do not believe, candidly, can 

pass the Senate, so our goal has been to craft legislation that could 

pass the Senate and then, hopefully, will be able to conference with 

the House. 

The short-term provisions for emergency drought relief apply 

only to California. The long-term provisions apply to all 17 Reclamation States West-wide, and some provisions, such as 

WaterSMART Reclamation grant programs and RIFIA, to Alaska 

and Hawaii as well. 

I am skipping, to shorten this. 

Data from Reclamation so far suggests that we have not seen 

flows this low in the Colorado River Basin for almost 1,000 years. 

While the basin states are doing a tremendous job to work together 

in confronting the drought, we have to reach consensus prior to 

congressional action, and there appears to be no immediate end in 

sight. 

The state has estimated that 150 percent of average snowpack in 

March is necessary to end the drought. We ended up with about 

80 percent the end of March, so this means the drought is going 

to continue through next year. 

The bill before you does not violate the Endangered Species Act 

(ESA) or the biological opinions or include any operational mandates for the agencies. The bill, we think, accomplishes the dual 

roles of maximizing water supplies and protecting the environment. 

To accomplish these goals, the bill’s short-term provisions include 

increased operational flexibility to deal with the drought right now, 

and the long-term provisions invest in infrastructure and environmental restoration throughout the West. For example, for longterm, the provisions reshape how the Federal Government assists 

states in coping with drought. We provide and identify 110 recycling projects and 25 desal projects that could produce enough 

water in California to supply over 1 million acre-feet of water for 

2.7 million homes. We increase WaterSMART funding by $150 million for projects to improve a range of water storage and water supply management. We fund the Reclamation Infrastructure Financing and Innovation Act, or RIFIA, at $200 million. We update 

Army Corps dam operations to increase water supply while reducing flood risk. We have $600 million in it for water storage projects 

to hold water in wet years for use in dry years, and the 17 states 

plus Alaska and Hawaii are all eligible; $560 million for recycling 

and water efficiency to better use the water that we do have; and 

$100 million for the desalinization plants. 

The bill’s short-term provisions do not contain mandates. Rather, 

they provide that agencies base water operations on science, not intuition or guesswork. 

It is also important to note the short-term provisions last two 

years or the duration of the Governor’s drought declaration, whichever is longer. For that brief time, the bill provides for more operational flexibility in the two big conveyance systems I spoke of, and 

a more precisely managed system for which we also include funding. 

For example, the short-term provisions allow for increased pumping during winter storms to capture peak flows, and it eliminates 


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the automatic so-called payback of water supply so that agencies 

can keep the water they gain from the winter storms. 

Other examples of the short-term are maintaining a one-for-one 

ratio for water transfers through the spring and early summer to 

ensure that 100 percent of the water identified for transfer goes to 

communities that need it most, and the bill extends the time period 

for transfers by five months stretching supplies during the critical 

growing season. 

With the chair’s permission, I would like to enter into the record 

eight ways in which the water bill provides supplies in the shortterm, without going into them precisely. 

Senator LEE. Without objection. 

[The information referred to follows:] 


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Senator FEINSTEIN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

We have worked with relevant federal and state agencies for two 

years now to make sure this bill can produce real water in a manner consistent with the Endangered Species Act and biological 

opinions. 

To remove any doubt, we included a simple, clear savings clause 

to make it crystal clear that the bill is consistent with environmental laws and biological opinions. The bill provides $1.3 billion 

in authorizations, all of which are offset in two ways. 

First, the Bureau of Reclamation would identify, with public 

input, projects appropriate for deauthorization. This would reduce 

existing authorizations between $1 billion and $1.7 billion. These 

are all authorizations that have existed for a substantial period of 

time and have not been utilized. 

The second offset increases federal revenues by $632 million over 

10 years by inducing Western water contractors to accelerate their 

debt payments. 

So this is just a very brief summary of this bill, Mr. Chairman 

and Ranking Member Wyden. 

And thank you, Chairman Flake. I am sorry you missed this, but 

I know you are a quick study, so thank you very much. 

I look forward to today’s discussion and to working with all of 

you to get a bill signed into law. Thank you very much. 

Senator LEE. Thank you, Senator Feinstein. Your documents will 

be admitted into the record, without objection. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Feinstein follows:] 


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Senator LEE. Senator McCain. 

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN MCCAIN, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM ARIZONA 

Senator MCCAIN. Senator Lee, Senator Flake, Senator Wyden, 

Senator Manchin, thank you. 

You mentioned, Senator Lee, that, in the West, water is for fighting. You left out Mark Twain said, ‘‘In the West, water is for fighting; whiskey is for drinking.’’ That was his complete statement, for 

the record. 

Senator LEE. My apologies. That was the Mormon in me just editing that for television. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator MCCAIN. My predecessor, Barry Goldwater, once said 

that in Arizona, we have so little water that the trees chase the 

dogs. I would not want to enter that into the record. 

But anyway, I am proud to cosponsor the legislation, the Western 

Water Supply and Planning Enhancement Act. I thank Senator 

Flake for his leadership on this piece of legislation. I want to thank 

our colleagues, Senator Heller, Senator Barrasso, Senator Daines, 

and Senator Risch. 

I am grateful that the Subcommittee will receive testimony from 

Mr. Tom Buschatzke, the Director of the Arizona Department of 

Water Resources. Tom is one of Arizona’s foremost experts on 

water policy, and I applaud his leadership and that of our Governor, Doug Ducey. 

I believe water and fire are the defining environmental issues of 

the 21st century. Both issues are connected. Decreased levels of 

rain runoff and snowmelt have stressed our water supplies and degraded the ecosystems of our fire-prone forests. 

My home State of Arizona, like much of the West, is coping with 

its 16th consecutive year of drought, and the drought is taking its 

toll. According to the U.S. Geological Service, treasured rivers in 

my home state, like the Verde River and the free-flowing San 

Pedro River, could run dry within the next 80 years. 

Mr. Chairman, 80 percent of our drought-stressed forests in Arizona have been consumed by wildfire in the last 20 years. You can 

do the math and figure out what is going to happen to the national 

forests in the State of Arizona. 

This is a critical, crucial, compelling issue, and it is time we sat 

down together, I would say to Senator Feinstein, and I thank Senator Wyden for his continued efforts at cooperation, to address this 

issue. 

If water levels in Lake Mead drop below the 1,075-foot mark, the 

Interior Department will trigger cutbacks in Colorado River water 

for the basin states. Due to Arizona’s junior water rights, a shortage would impact water supplies for more than five million people 

across Phoenix, Tucson, and Yuma. 

Today, there is 50 percent likelihood that the first round of cutbacks will occur in 2018. Arizona planned for this eventuality and 

will withstand these initial shortages because of investments in 

conservation, reservoir construction, and groundwater banking. But 

with Lake Mead levels at their lowest since it was filled, there is 

no question that deeper shortages are looming. 


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The United States will pay a profound environmental and economic price if greater attention and resources are not devoted to 

this issue. 

The bill we propose is a combination of our top strategies for curtailing the drought at the federal level. Among other things, the 

legislation proposes more equitable water storage arrangements for 

states whose proactive conservation keeps water in Lake Mead. We 

also propose to give the Forest Service expedited authorities for 

fire-prevention thinning near reservoirs. We need to thin our forests, Mr. Chairman. We need to thin our forests. Anyone who has 

ever flown over a forest fire, as I have, and watched trees explode 

because of the fuel that has built up around those forests over 

many, many years knows that we have to thin our forests. 

We have to propose to give the Forest Service expedited authorities for that thinning near reservoirs to guard against toxic ash 

runoff. 

The bill would develop a regional plan to eradicate the non-native salt cedar tree. Each salt cedar tree is estimated to consume 

about 200 gallons of water a day. I repeat, one salt cedar tree consumes about 200 gallons of water a day. It is all up and down our 

rivers and the Colorado River, as the Chairman well knows. The 

Central Arizona Project (CAP) estimates that removing salt cedar, 

replanting with native vegetation, and that second part of the 

equation is critical, like cottonwood and willows, could save up to 

860,000 acre-feet of water across the lower basin. I repeat, 860,000 

acre-feet. I have seen salt cedar removal projects work in places 

like the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area, where only 400 

acres of salt cedar stretching two stories high were restored as wetlands habitat. 

Our bill would augment the work of the Kazakhstan salt cedar 

beetle. Not many Americans are familiar with the Kazakhstan salt 

cedar beetle. This wonderful little beetle, the best thing I have ever 

heard of that might have come from Kazakhstan, is now eating its 

way down the Colorado River and killing the salt cedar. That is the 

good news. The bad news is, Mr. Chairman, we are not replacing 

the dead salt cedar. But God bless the Kazakhstan salt cedar beetle. 

Some biologists predict that the beetle will populate most of the 

Colorado River corridor by 2020. I believe it is prudent to begin 

planning for the beetles’ presence and to move aggressively on 

these and other innovative water strategies covered under our bill. 

Mr. Chairman, I do not want to take up much more time of the 

Committee. I believe that the United States of America and those 

of us who are seeing a threat to the lives and lifestyle of our children and our grandchildren should get together and fix this problem. We have not faced a problem that we cannot fix. But right 

now, this threat in the 14th or 15th year of a drought is a direct 

threat to our lives and that of our children and our grandchildren. 

I think we owe it to them to act in a most constructive fashion. 

I would like to again ask California to return the water they 

have stolen from us. 

[Laughter.] 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 


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Senator LEE. I am sure Senator Feinstein will arrange that very 

quickly. 

Thank you very much, both of you, for being here and for your 

testimony today. 

I would like to now ask those participating in our second panel 

to come forward. Specifically, Commissioner Lopez, Deputy Chief 

Weldon, Mr. Quinn, Mr. Keppen, Mr. Long, Mr. Buschatzke, and 

Ms. Ziemer, if you can come forward to the witness table. 

As they are coming forward, I will be introducing them. 

We are going to begin this panel by hearing from the Honorable 

Estevan Lopez, the 22nd Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation. After Commissioner Lopez, we will have Leslie Weldon of the 

USDA Forest Service, who has served as the Deputy Chief for the 

National Forest System since 2011. We welcome you back to the 

Committee, Deputy Chief Weldon. Then we will have Tim Quinn, 

the Executive Director of the Association of California Water Agencies. Following Mr. Quinn, we will have Dan Keppen before the 

Committee once again. Mr. Keppen is the Executive Director of the 

Family Farm Alliance and testified at the Committee’s last legislative hearing on drought. Then we will have Bill Long, the President of Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District. After 

him, we will have Tom Buschatzke, who was before the Committee 

last summer to discuss drought. Tom is the Director of the Arizona 

Department of Water Resources and has been a powerful voice for 

Arizona’s water interests. Thank you for being here, Tom, and for 

your leadership on water issues in Arizona. Finally, we will have 

Laura Ziemer, the Senior Counsel and Water Policy Advisor for 

Trout Unlimited. 

Mr. Lopez, we will start with you. 

STATEMENT OF HON. ESTEVAN LOPEZ, COMMISSIONER, 

BUREAU OF RECLAMATION, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE 

INTERIOR 

Mr. LOPEZ. Chairman Lee, Ranking Member Wyden, and members of the Subcommittee, I am Estevan Lopez, Commissioner of 

the Bureau of Reclamation. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee to provide the Department’s view on 

four of the five bills before the Subcommittee today. 

I am accompanied by John Bezdek, who many of you know, and 

who serves as our Counselor to the Deputy Secretary. 

My written statements have been submitted for the record, so I 

will summarize those very briefly in the interest of time. 

To begin, S. 2533 by Senator Feinstein is a multi-part bill aimed 

at mitigating the extreme drought experienced for the past four 

years in California. As you know, the Department has testified on 

prior versions of the bill before this Committee, and we are happy 

that the Senator and her staff have worked very closely with us, 

particularly with Mr. Bezdek, to address technical issues and refine 

the bill. 

This collaborative process has produced a good result, and we believe that the bill before the Subcommittee today would improve 

the water supply situation in California while being protective of 

the environment, endangered species, and the very important salmVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:32 Feb 23, 2018 Jkt 021987 PO 00000 Frm 00150 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\A987.XXX A987

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on fishery that migrates through the Sacramento-San Joaquin 

Delta. 

I know that there are some elements of the bill that have created 

concern for some parties, and we understand those perspectives. 

We are glad to continue working with Senator Feinstein in the 

process she has employed to date on any of these issues. But on 

balance, we are confident and comfortable with the measured approach contained in S. 2533. 

Next, S. 2616 by Senator Gardner would modify certain costsharing and revenue provisions relating to the Arkansas Valley 

Conduit in Colorado. This is a project with a long history. The Bureau of Reclamation has been able to maintain a certain level of 

funding to complete preconstruction work that needs to be done. 

Reclamation and the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy 

District began discussions last year to develop an approach for 

funding construction, which is an important step toward meeting 

the drinking water needs of six Colorado counties where water contains high levels of naturally occurring radium and uranium. 

S. 2616 aims to help advance long-awaited construction of the 

conduit by authorizing miscellaneous revenues to the district to enable repayment of loans from the Colorado Water Conservation 

Board (CWCB). While the Administration supports the goals of assisting non-federal sponsors with access to non-federal capital for 

the construction of projects, we want to continue to work with the 

sponsors and local communities on how we will move forward with 

construction. Our budget is under great pressure, and we are encouraged by the efforts of Bill Long and the Conservancy District 

to reach out to the state to make possible a loan to begin funding. 

S. 2902 by Senator Flake is another multi-part bill with several 

provisions, some of which are drought-related and others which are 

more indirect relationship to drought. As stated in my written testimony, many of the provisions of S. 2902 have been testified on 

separately by the Department at prior hearings. On balance, the 

bill contains some elements we support and others we do not, and 

we are glad to explore that further with the Subcommittee. 

Lastly, S. 2907 by Senator Reid would enable continuation of 

System Conservation Pilot Program underway on the Colorado 

River that aims to address the prolonged drought on the basis of 

facilitating greater storage in Lakes Mead and Powell. We support 

this program in our budget request and appreciate Senator Reid’s 

support as well as that of the stakeholders here today who have 

committed their own resources to the program as well. 

This concludes my statement. I am pleased to answer questions 

at the appropriate time, and I appreciate the Subcommittee’s consideration for my travel commitment later this afternoon. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Lopez follows:] 


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Senator LEE. Thank you, Commissioner. 

Deputy Chief Weldon. 

STATEMENT OF LESLIE WELDON, DEPUTY CHIEF, NATIONAL 

FOREST SYSTEM, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Ms. WELDON. Thank you, Chairman Lee, and members of the 

Subcommittee, for the opportunity to provide the views of the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture regarding S. 2902, the Western Water 

Supply and Planning Enhancement Act, and S. 2524, the Bolts 

Ditch Access and Use Act. 

Accept my apology for some of the generalness of my remarks. 

We would like to have additional time to fully analyze the effects 

of the bill. That said, we appreciate and share the strong interest 

in ensuring resilient, sustainable flows of water and restoring 

health to forested watersheds. 

As we have asserted at previous hearings on similar matters, I 

emphasize that all the efforts of the Forest Service regarding the 

stewardship of water resources are conducted to help ensure that 

abundant clean water is available for the public’s use and enjoyment. Whether it is to make snow for downhill skiing, provide for 

world-class fishing experiences, sustain wildlife or domestic animals, or to maintain community and agricultural water supplies, 

everything is done for the public value. 

Watersheds have long been used and recognized as basic building 

blocks of sound resource management. Beginning in 1897 through 

the Organic Administration Act, Congress directed the Forest Service to manage the National Forest System lands to secure favorable 

flows of water conditions for multiple public uses and benefits that 

sustain economies and maintain communities across the nation 

today. 

Since then, Congress has provided additional legislative direction 

to the Forest Service regarding our role to sustain water, watersheds, and the management of those resources, direction that is 

even more critical today as we face ongoing drought, a longer fire 

season, and other consequences of a changing climate. 

We recognize the fundamental role of states in education, adjudication of water rights according to state laws, and assert no intention to exceed statutory authorities granted to us in this or any 

other aspect of our mission. USDA believes that the existing framework of state and federal statutes adequately provide for the protection of privately-held water rights in balance with public service 

and natural resources conservation work of the Forest Service and 

that no additional legislation to ensure this balance is needed. 

As an example of our success in working within this framework, 

we point to our response to concerns from the ski industry, states, 

and others regarding our initial draft of a watershed clause for ski 

area special use permits. By working closely and collaboratively 

with those most concerned, we were able to craft a final water 

clause for ski area permits that recognizes and protects the value 

of privately held water rights as assets and also ensures the availability of sufficient water for current and future ski area operations. 

Another example is our response to concerns regarding groundwater. After listening to those concerns following the publication of 


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a proposed directive in 2014, the Forest Service acknowledged the 

concerns in our approach, stopped all work on that directive, and 

will not move forward with that original proposal. Rather, we have 

committed to engaging with states, tribes, and citizens, to understand and collaboratively address their concerns. 

Should we choose to move forward with a new directive in the 

future, it would only be after fully engaging with those interested 

and affected in an open and transparent manner to ensure that we 

get it correct. 

We also agree with the need to protect critical water supply watersheds. This type of work is fundamental to our conservation and 

resource stewardship mission, and will become even more important into the future. 

Again, while we cannot comment on specifics of S. 2902 as of yet, 

as a general matter, we appreciate efforts to provide planning tools 

that incentivize collaboration and improve efficiency as long as they 

have strong protections to ensure adherence to important and fundamental environmental laws. We ask to continue to work with the 

Committee on these aspects. 

Finally, on S. 2524, we understand this bill seeks to resolve 

issues associated with the use and maintenance of the Bolts Ditch 

near the town of Minturn, Colorado. We acknowledge that this bill 

has the support of Eagle County, the Colorado River District, and 

local and national wilderness advocacy organizations, and USDA 

does not oppose 2524. 

I appreciate the opportunity to be here today and look forward 

to answering any questions you may have. Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Weldon follows:] 


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Senator FLAKE [presiding]. Thank you. 

Dr. Quinn. 

STATEMENT OF DR. TIMOTHY QUINN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 

ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA WATER AGENCIES 

Dr. QUINN. Thank you, Senator Flake, members of the Subcommittee. 

My name is Tim Quinn. I am the Executive Director of the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA). I am going to forgo 

my credentials or those of my association and get right to the main 

point. 

Like Senator Feinstein, ACWA, by its very nature, represents a 

statewide constituency. I represent 440 member agencies that cover 

the entire State of California—ag, urban, North, South, et cetera. 

I can tell you in one sentence why that diverse coalition so 

strongly supports S. 2533: because we believe that legislation 

moves the Federal Government into closer alignment with key 

California policies both in the near-term as we are dealing with the 

current drought and in the long-term as we strive to be droughtresilient for future droughts. 

I have been actively involved in California water management for 

35 years. Over that period, we have evolved a couple simple themes 

that we believe work. One of those themes we call co-equal goals. 

What that means in simple terms is both water supply reliability 

and the environment matter in California water policy, and we try 

to operate in ways that benefit both of those. 

The second major theme is to use comprehensive solutions. If you 

limit the number of tools that are available to you, you will have 

to play off the environment against the water supply or vice versa. 

So we operate under something called the California Water Action 

Plan, which calls for a very comprehensive set of tools. 

To accomplish either of those objectives, coequal goals or comprehensive solutions, we need a partnership with the Federal Government that, quite frankly, we do not think we enjoy today. Too 

often, federal agencies are approaching us from the Endangered 

Species Act, looking at single species, single tools. We wind up with 

major negative impacts on our water supply that we do not think 

is doing any good for the environment. 

Things need to change. We think the Senator’s S. 2533 moves in 

the right direction. 

In the near-term, S. 2533 requires the federal agencies to put a 

higher weight on water supply, as they are going through applying 

their discretion. They do have a lot of discretion. Currently, we do 

not think water supply gets nearly enough weight in their considerations. So that provision alone is important to us in California, 

moving the Federal Government in a direction where they are 

thinking more in terms of coequal goals than just the most vulnerable species under the Endangered Species Act. 

To accomplish those near-term objectives, the Senator’s bill uses 

various tools to get more efficiency out of the system. She mentioned opportunistic pumping. When the winter storms hit, be 

ready and have a place to put that water. Similarly, the bill calls 

for real-time operation of the system. 


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I would be glad to answer any questions. It is much more efficient than the static rules we have now where pumping is determined regardless of actual conditions in the system. Real-time operation is an order of magnitude better way to operate the system. 

Lastly, and I will use this as an example of water supply benefits 

in the near-term, S. 2533 tries to open up the water market in 

California between sellers in Northern California and buyers in 

Southern California. Water marketing is an important tool in our 

state, but most of the suppliers are above our Delta and most of 

our buyers are below the Delta. 

This year, because of what we regard to be artificial restrictions 

on the ability to move water from willing sellers to willing buyers, 

I can tell you exactly how much water will be moved from above 

the Delta to below the Delta in California this year. The answer 

is zero, not a single drop, because the Endangered Species Act and 

the need to meet contract demands have closed all the windows 

that used to be open for moving water in the California market. 

I am an economist by training. I understand the power of market 

forces, and I believe when you combine that with real-time operations and opportunistic pumping of water flows, there are hundreds of thousands acre-feet of water available under the shortterm provisions of Senator Feinstein’s bill, which tells you why we 

are so anxious to see it move forward. 

In the long-term, the bill makes the Federal Government our 

partner in California’s comprehensive Water Action Plan. In particular, we support provisions that would promote desalinization 

projects; funding WaterSMART to promote conservation; funding 

and improvements in Title XVI, a dollar allocation that will significantly promote water use; authorizations for new storage projects; 

new financing approaches like RIFIA, which is a low-cost buying 

approach that some of our project proponents think would be enormously valuable. We are also very supportive of some of the 

streamlining provisions in the Senator’s bill and for provisions that 

would provide assistance to disadvantaged communities. 

If you add all of this up, just the desalinization and the recycling 

provisions of S. 2533 could result in 1.4 million acre-feet of new 

water in California in combination with, we believe, hundreds of 

thousands acre-feet for more flexibility in the near-term provisions. 

This is a good down payment on California’s drought resiliency 

in the future, so ACWA would urge the Subcommittee to move this 

bill forward so we can go and deal with the authors of 2898 and 

come up with a combined approach that we can send to the White 

House and get signed. 

Thank you very much. 

[The prepared statement of Dr. Quinn follows:] 


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Senator FLAKE. Thank you. 

Mr. Keppen. 

STATEMENT OF DAN KEPPEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 

FAMILY FARM ALLIANCE 

Mr. KEPPEN. Good afternoon, Chairman Flake, Senator Gardner. 

My name is Dan Keppen. On behalf of the Family Farm Alliance, 

I thank you for this opportunity to present this testimony on 

S. 2533, Senator Feinstein’s California and West-wide drought bill. 

The negative impacts of today’s droughts and water shortages 

have reached staggering levels for our farmers and ranchers, their 

families, and the irrigated agriculture community. Unfortunately, 

these impacts are driven in part by current regulations triggered 

by fixed calendar dates or singular operational thresholds, as Mr. 

Quinn talked about. 

Important species distribution or other relevant environmental 

factors are often not considered. Such approaches are inflexible, inefficient, and ineffective. They stem in part from the fact that Congress has not explicitly directed agencies to be flexible and innovative, so the agencies default to the actions that are least likely to 

get them sued. Thus, the status quo persists. California Bay Delta 

(CBD) operations in 2016 provide an excellent example of this, and 

I have included some figures with my written testimony that demonstrate this. 

Because of El Nino storms this winter, inflow in the SacramentoSan Joaquin Delta was almost three times greater than it was this 

time this last year, yet the water pumped to supply millions of 

acres of world-class farmland and more than 20 million Californians living south of the Delta has barely increased as compared 

to last year because of regulatory restrictions. Again, one of my figures in the written testimony clearly shows that. 

S. 2533 provides for more flexible, efficient, multipurpose management of the federal Central Valley Project (CVP) and the Delta. 

This is also true of the House-passed H.R. 2898, the Western 

Water and American Food Security Act of 2015, which the full 

Committee considered during a drought hearing held last October 

that I participated in. 

That hearing also examined Senator Feinstein’s earlier drought 

legislation, S. 1894. I testified at the hearing expressing our support for both bills which, while similar in intent, differed on some 

important aspects regarding the Delta. 

Certain provisions in H.R. 2898, if enacted, would better assist 

producers in the CBD in dealing with ESA restrictions on water deliveries. The House bill does this through improved management of 

species, water flows, and habitat in the Delta. 

H.R. 2898 also would facilitate future water development projects 

through its water supply permitting and Reclamation projects 

streamlining provisions. 

S. 2533 also includes California-specific provisions. These are intended to provide additional flexibility and tools to address water 

conveyance and flows in relation to fish populations on a real-time 

basis. We back the bill’s provisions that seek to address other 

stressors in the Delta environment, especially non-native fish that 

prey on ESA-listed species like Delta smelt and Chinook salmon. 


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S. 2533 also includes specific federal authorities and actions that 

would aid fish passage in the Delta, increase hatchery production, 

and improve spawning and rearing habitat of listed species. 

S. 2533 generally directs the Federal Government to maximize 

water supplies to federal and state water users by approving 

projects and operations that provide additional water supplies. 

The bill includes temporary operational flexibility provisions that 

would allow for the diversion and capture of peak winter storm 

flows in the Delta. It streamlines National Environmental Policy 

Act (NEPA) permitting on water infrastructure projects and directs 

agencies to complete certain ongoing feasibility studies for California surface water storage projects. Some of these were originally 

authorized nearly 20 years ago. Tim and I were involved with this 

20 years ago, and they have languished ever since. 

In addition to its California Bay Delta focus, S. 2533 contains a 

number of additional provisions that would apply throughout the 

West and which we have previously supported. The bill would provide up to $600 million in budget authority for the Secretary of Interior to request funding for the federal share of new water storage 

projects in the Western United States. S. 2533 also includes innovative financing provisions for expanded water infrastructure, 

which we support. 

We back provisions in S. 2533 directing the Corps of Engineers 

to identify and study flood control rule curves at corps-regulated 

reservoirs where additional water supplies could be stored and 

used in dry years. However, this provision has been superseded by 

an improved version included in the Senate-passed S. 2012 energy 

bill recently, and it should be updated accordingly, in our view. 

We support Senator Feinstein’s proposed expansion of WaterSMART grants and availability of Reclamation Title XVI water recycling and reuse grants. 

To conclude, we are encouraged by this Committee’s consideration of both the House-passed H.R. 2898 and S. 2533. We urge you 

to keep at it. That is because two separate bills are of absolutely 

no value to a parched West. This has been twice emphasized in letters to this Committee and signed off by over 100 Western agriculture and water organizations in the past eight months. 

What is needed is a single bill that can be enacted by Congress 

and signed into law by the President. We must all work together 

to ensure that Western water users have every tool available to 

survive and recover from the current drought in the hard dry years 

that the future may hold. 

Thank you, and I would stand for any questions you may have. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Keppen follows:] 


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Senator GARDNER [presiding]. Thank you, Mr. Keppen. 

I apologize, again, to the witnesses who are here, as we have 

three votes that everybody is dashing in and out for. Thank you 

very much for your time and testimony today. 

It is my privilege and honor to hear the next witness, Mr. Bill 

Long, who I will speak a little bit more about in the questioning 

period. 

Mr. Long from Colorado, welcome. 

STATEMENT OF BILL LONG, PRESIDENT, BOARD OF DIRECTORS, SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO WATER CONSERVANCY 

DISTRICT 

Mr. LONG. Thank you, Mr. Chair, Senator Gardner. 

My name is Bill Long. I am President of the Board of Directors 

of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District. I appreciate this opportunity to appear before you today in support of 

S. 2616, which was introduced by you, Senator Gardner, and is cosponsored by Senator Bennett. Your favorable and expeditious consideration of the bill will be greatly appreciated by the people of 

the Lower Arkansas Valley. 

The Arkansas Valley Conduit, an authorized feature of the Bureau of Reclamation’s Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, will convey 

treated drinking water from the project’s Pueblo reservoir east to 

40 communities in the Lower Valley. These small, rural towns currently use groundwater wells to supply some or all of their drinking water. 

Twenty-one towns have water supplies containing naturally occurring, cancer-causing radioactive elements at levels which exceed 

or nearly exceed federally-mandated standards. The Colorado Department of Health and Environment has notified these providers 

that they must treat the water supplies to remove the contaminants or find a better water quality source. 

In addition, the median salt concentration in the current supply 

is nearly seven times greater than the secondary drinking water 

standard. 

Our communities have a critical need for safe drinking water 

supplies. In its 2014 Record of Decision, Reclamation concluded 

that individual community water systems diverting and treating 

water from the Arkansas River would not provide a reliable, longterm, safe water supply. 

Instead, an efficient regional solution, the Arkansas Valley Conduit, was selected. It takes advantage of the City of Pueblo’s existing water treatment facilities and will benefit from the economies 

of scale. This regional project will be less costly than any of the alternatives examined by Reclamation under NEPA. 

Because this regional project is without question the most efficient and effective way to deliver quality drinking water to the affected communities, the district has been discussing with Reclamation and the Department of the Interior ways to provide non-federal financing for construction of the conduit. The concept is that approximately $100 million would be provided by the district from non-federal sources, thus reducing significantly the appropriated dollars needed for the project. 


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The Fry-Ark Project generates revenue from local water providers who pay Reclamation for the storage and conveyance of their 

nonproject water. S. 2616 would expand the ability to use these 

revenues not only to repay the 35 percent plus interest required in 

legislation passed in 2009. The bill would allow use of the miscellaneous revenue sooner and to greater savings to the Federal Government during project construction. 

S. 2616 would further allow the use of miscellaneous revenues to 

repay the $100 million non-federal contribution mentioned earlier. 

The district anticipates obtaining the non-federal financing through 

a loan from the Colorado Water Conservation Board, our state 

water policy agency and a strong supporter of the project. In fact, 

$60 million has already been approved by the State of Colorado. 

I ask that the Colorado Water Conservation Board written statement in support of S. 2616 be included in the official record, along 

with the written statement, which I have submitted, and have the 

CWCB statement with me. 

Senator GARDNER. Without objection. 

[The information referred to follows:] 


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Mr. LONG. At this time, there is no statutory requirement for 

non-federal financing of the project; however, the district is mindful 

of the budgetary constraints Congress faces. S. 2616 is offered by 

our Senators with the intent of substantially reducing appropriations needed for the conduit. By maximizing in three ways the use 

of project-generated revenues, the federal outlay needed for construction will be reduced by more than $150 million. As miscellaneous revenues continue to be generated by the Fry-Ark Project, 

after repayment of this CWCB loan and the district’s 35 percent 

share of the federal investment, those revenues can continue to 

repay the remaining 65 percent of the conduit’s cost. S. 2616 will 

clearly achieve the goal of reducing federal outlays through appropriation. 

Of greater importance to the people of the Lower Arkansas Valley is having a reliable, safe drinking water supply, not a tainted 

supply which brings a significant threat to public health, and enforcement costs from regulators. 

Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity to testify. 

I would be happy to respond to any questions you may have. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Long follows:] 


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Senator GARDNER. Thank you, Mr. Long. 

For the sake of Senators Roberts and Moran, I will clarify something that you said. It is the ‘‘Arkansas River,’’ not the ‘‘Ar-Kansas 

River.’’ 

So thank you very much, Mr. Long, for your testimony today. 

Mr. Buschatzke, Director of the Arizona Department of Water 

Resources, thank you. Please proceed. 

STATEMENT OF THOMAS BUSCHATZKE, DIRECTOR, ARIZONA 

DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES 

Mr. BUSCHATZKE. Thank you, Chairman Gardner. 

I am Tom Buschatzke, Director of the Arizona Department of 

Water Resources. Thank you for providing me an opportunity to 

present testimony on behalf of the State of Arizona regarding 

S. 2902, the Western Water Supply and Planning Enhancement 

Act. 

The ongoing drought in the Western United States demonstrates 

the need for congressional action that empowers states to better 

plan for and manage their existing water resources, to re-operate 

existing reservoirs to generate more water, to reestablish healthy 

forests to increase their water yield and protect the quality of 

water they produce. If enacted, S. 2902 will provide new tools to 

help achieve those goals. 

My statement today will focus on four sections of the bill that reflect a consensus position of a broad group of Arizona water users. 

Section 101 directs the reevaluation of flood control operations at 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or U.S. Bureau of Reclamation dams 

to enhance water storage. In Arizona, an opportunity exists to create temporary storage in flood control space at modified Roosevelt 

Dam, but past efforts have been stymied by a cumbersome Corps 

of Engineers process. With a successful process, an average of 

about 70,000 acre-feet per year, an increase of 10 percent to the 

water supplies of the Salt River Project in the Phoenix metropolitan area, can be achieved. Section 101 provides clarity and potentially streamlines the process for creating temporary storage at 

modified Roosevelt Dam. 

Section 103 seeks to have the National Academy of Sciences complete a study on the effectiveness of controlling tamarisk to increase water supplies and improve riparian habitats, and for the 

Bureau of Reclamation to create a feasible plan that builds upon 

the 2012 Colorado River Basin Supply and Demand Study recommendations to implement tamarisk control. Arizona supports 

cost-effective methods to control tamarisk to create additional flow 

in the Colorado River System and to improve riparian habitat. 

Section 104 provides authority for the Secretary of the Interior 

to fund or participate in projects to conserve water for the benefit 

of the Colorado River System. Provisions of this section build upon 

collaborative efforts of the Colorado River Basin states and the Department of the Interior to proactively manage the Colorado River 

to improve its health. The creation of system conservation water is 

a critical component of efforts to protect Lake Mead flows. From 

2014 to the end of 2016, Arizona will have created a total of about 

165,000 acre-feet of system conservation water. This is a significant 

contribution to Lake Mead elevations that benefit all the Basin 


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states. Absolute certainty that the system water will stay in Lake 

Mead is a necessity for Arizona to continue its efforts to create 

these protection volumes because we have the ability to use water 

solely for the benefit of Arizona through its water banking program, which stores water in aquifers within Arizona for its own future use. Some water users in Arizona prefer the water banking option over the system conservation option. Arizona appreciates that 

the Secretary of the Interior has chosen not to release any of the 

system water created to date but supports the provisions in the bill 

that achieve the outcome of creating absolute certainty that system 

water will remain as system water. Furthermore, Section 104 provides an incentive for all water users in the Lower Basin to continue to incrementally add to the system conservation measures 

with the knowledge that the conserved water will provide the benefit that was intended. 

Lastly, Sections 111 through 114 of the legislation create a 

streamlined permitting process for forests and wildland restoration 

activities in critical water supply watersheds. The woeful health of 

our forests is well-known and the number of acres burned has 

grown dramatically over the last three-plus decades. Fire impacts 

reduce reservoir capacity and yield because of the increased sedimentation and also degrade water quality. There is an immediate 

need to take action to reduce the risk of catastrophic fire in our watersheds. Expediting permitting is necessary to restore forests to a 

healthy condition in a timely manner, and this legislation can help 

achieve that outcome. 

In summary, the State of Arizona supports Sections 101, 103, 

and 111 through 114 of S. 2902. Collectively, these provisions further the efforts of the state to develop, manage, and protect the 

quantity and quality of its water supplies and improve the health 

of its forests. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Buschatzke follows:] 


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Senator FLAKE [presiding]. Thank you. 

Ms. Ziemer. 

STATEMENT OF LAURA ZIEMER, SENIOR COUNSEL AND 

WATER POLICY ADVISOR, TROUT UNLIMITED 

Ms. ZIEMER. Good afternoon, Chairman Flake. Thank you for the 

invitation to testify today on behalf of Trout Unlimited. 

I live and work in Montana and have experienced firsthand the 

devastation of prolonged drought. That is why I have spent most 

of the last 20 years finding collaborative solutions to water scarcity. 

I have pioneered new ways to make water go further with Montana 

ranches. I created a voluntary drought response plan in the Blackfoot River Basin, built on the idea that if everyone gives a little, 

no one loses out. 

My experience has been one of diverse partners coming together 

to find innovative solutions to water scarcity at a variety of scales, 

by rethinking water infrastructure and repairing natural systems. 

I have learned a couple things during a decade of walking irrigation ditches that I would like to share today. I would like to tell 

four stories of collaborative efforts with partners like the Family 

Farm Alliance and Reclamation that each help chart a path forward. Each of these stories anchor Trout Unlimited support or opposition to the bills before the Subcommittee today. 

In Eastern Washington’s Yakima River Basin, Trout Unlimited 

sat down with irrigators, other sportsmen, local, state, and federal 

agency staff and tribal members to develop a mosaic of the drought 

resilience approaches from water infrastructure improvements to 

restoring fish passage to temporary water right transfers. The 

State of Washington believes strongly enough in the Yakima plan 

that it has already provided $161 million toward its implementation. Collaborators of the Yakima plan achieve more for their own 

interests standing together than they would on their own. Senator 

Cantwell’s white paper on drought and water security is an expression of the Yakima success. It calls for federal support of collaborative watershed-scale solutions based on a portfolio of projects 

with innovative financing to get projects over the finish line. 

My second story is my own work on Montana’s Sun River, where 

we found a way to benefit irrigation water supply while restoring 

flows to the chronically dewatered Sun River. Two thousand feet of 

lined canal, 2,300 feet of PVC pipe, and a new bypass canal put 

more water in the Sun River, more than doubling the wild trout 

population over the last three years. 

In S. 2533, Section 101 reflects my Sun River experience. Section 

101 prioritizes WaterSMART projects that provide benefits across 

the three legs of the drought-resilient stool, creating benefits to 

fisheries alongside benefits to agricultural and urban water users. 

The kind of work we accomplish in the Sun River Basin would also 

benefit from Section 508, which supports an open water data system. 

My third story comes out of Wyoming, where a decade of restoration projects with ranchers meant that partnerships were in place 

when, last year, Reclamation and municipalities announced a system conservation pilot program. This effort to develop water transfer tools addresses long-term drought in the Colorado River Basin. 


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For the upcoming irrigation season, Trout Unlimited and Wyoming ranchers have worked together to offer more than 10,000 

acre-feet of water conservation in the upper Green River, primarily 

through split season water leases. The Reid-Heller amendment to 

the energy and water appropriations bill continues this pilot program. 

My last story is Trout Unlimited’s long-term commitment to the 

Klamath. It shows that ground-up, collaborative solutions can 

emerge even in a river basin deeply divided over water conflicts. 

Years of discussion and listening to real needs produced these 

three hard-won agreements among diverse stakeholders. 

The lesson from the Klamath River relevant to today’s hearing 

is that carefully crafted solutions of mutual benefit produce bipartisan support. The Klamath initiative led by Senators Wyden and 

Merkley brought investment in irrigation infrastructure and water 

supplies to support one of the most productive salmon and 

steelhead fisheries on the Pacific coast. This experience contrasts 

with S. 2533 in two important ways. 

First, Title III legislates some sets of water users as higher priorities than others, which seems likely to fuel more litigation and 

conflict rather than moving toward lasting solutions based on mutual benefit. 

Second, Section 112 grants West-wide authority to construct new 

storage. Our experience is that new storage should be evaluated 

and carried out in a multi-stakeholder, basin-wide process, and 

Section 112 could undermine such collaborative processes. 

Finally, Trout Unlimited opposes S. 2902 because it undercuts 

collaborative watershed-based efforts and key provisions. 

I hope my testimony today has been helpful in charting a path 

forward toward water security in the West. I would be happy to answer any questions. Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Ziemer follows:] 


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Senator FLAKE. Thank you. Thank you all for your testimony. I 

am sorry for the confusion here, as one has to go and vote and another comes back. We have one more vote, which I will need to go 

take in a few minutes. But hopefully, Senator Gardner will come 

back and we can continue with questions. 

I have a letter here from the Western Governors’ Association 

signed by Governor Mead of Wyoming, Governor Bullock of Montana, the association’s chair and vice chair, respectively. The Western Governors’ Association believes that a comprehensive Westwide response to drought and water security is needed and asks 

the Committee to develop such legislation. 

So I ask unanimous consent that the letter be included in the 

record, without objection, I guess. 

[The information referred to follows:] 


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Senator FLAKE. It is good to be king. 

[Laughter.] 

Before I move to some questions, I want to convey my thanks to 

Commissioner Lopez for his leadership with the Bureau of Reclamation, the ongoing work in implementing the system conservation plan, and for developing the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan. I expressed this thanks to Secretary Jewell when she 

was in front of this Committee earlier this year, but I wanted to 

convey my gratitude to you personally. Thank you. 

It is great to have Tom Buschatzke here. I appreciate you making the trip. Thank you for your work in putting together priorities 

for Arizona and for working so hard on water issues there. 

S. 2902 and S. 2907 both expand on one of the voluntary programs to conserve water in Lake Mead that you talked about. It 

seems clear that the Colorado River Water Conservation Program 

has been successful and ought to be extended in whatever drought 

legislation emerges from this Committee. 

I ask that you please explain the different programs that already 

exist, and those that are in the works, to create this so-called system water in Lake Mead. Who participates in them? Who funds 

them? How do they differ? 

Mr. BUSCHATZKE. Yes, Senator Flake. There are a couple of programs that I want to highlight. 

The first is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was 

entered into between the Metropolitan Water District of Southern 

California, the Central Arizona Project, the Southern Nevada 

Water Authority, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and the states 

of Arizona, California, and Nevada. Volumes of water in the 

amount of 740,000 acre-feet are the goal of the MOU. It is a bestefforts program. Each one of the states through their water users 

has a piece of that 740,000 acre-feet for them to try to achieve. 

That 740,000 acre-feet has been shown through modeling to severely reduce the risk of having Lake Mead fall to unhealthy elevations. 

Within Arizona, there have been reductions through that program of 165,000 acre-feet of water dedicated to the system, water 

that is system conservation water by the end of 2016 and another 

215,000 acre-feet by the end of 2016 for intentionally created surplus water that is labeled in the name of the creator for later recovery out of the lake. The total cost of those two programs for Arizona through the Central Arizona Project was about $8 million. 

The other program, you mentioned it already, is the Pilot System 

Conservation Program. That again was funded by Metropolitan, 

CAP, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Denver Water, and the 

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, originally for an $11 million fund. Recently, the Central Arizona Project put another $1 million into that 

fund. That attempts to achieve system conservation savings in the 

Lower Basin using about two-thirds of that money, and in the 

Upper Basin using about one-third of that money. In the Lower 

Basin, we expect to achieve savings of 60,000 acre-feet, and in the 

Upper Basin, about 10,000 acre-feet. 

Many of those programs have had contracts entered into, and 

those contracts are being implemented, and the savings will occur 

over some number of years. 


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Senator FLAKE. Thank you. You mentioned in your testimony 

that some of the water users would rather water bank rather than 

leave it behind the dam. What assurances do they need before they 

feel comfortable leaving it behind the dam? 

Mr. BUSCHATZKE. Senator Flake, under the MOU and under the 

Pilot System Conservation agreements, we do have provisions that 

are kind of gentlemen’s agreements to leave that water in the lake. 

As I mentioned in my statement, the Secretary of Interior has chosen to do that. 

But I think to quell the debate in Arizona about whether to leave 

that water in the lake or put it in our aquifers under our control, 

we need more certainty that the water will stay there. We need the 

provisions of S. 2902 that do that. We need to make sure that those 

provisions are enforceable, so that we have the comfort we need to 

make sure that we are getting the benefit of the bargain for that 

water. 

Senator FLAKE. All right, thank you. 

Commissioner Lopez, I was encouraged to hear the Bureau of 

Reclamation committed an additional $5 million to the Colorado 

River System Conservation Pilot Project in 2016. Based on the previous year’s experience, how much additional Lake Mead protection 

volume do you anticipate that this year’s funding will help to create? 

Mr. LOPEZ. Senator, thank you for the question. 

You are correct. We have allocated $5 million for system conservation projects and of that $3.5 million to the Lower Basin and 

$1.5 million to the Upper Basin. 

Perhaps the best way to answer your question is to consider 

what was saved from the last phase, where, as Director Buschatzke 

just mentioned, combined funding was something on the order of 

$11 million. We were able to acquire about 63,000 acre-feet in the 

Lower Basin using about $8 million, and in the Upper Basin, we 

conserved something on the order of about 3,300 acre-feet using the 

remainder, about $2.75 million. So that gives you some sense of 

what we have been able to accomplish so far. 

With the $5 million that we have put up for this year, we hope 

to get additional non-federal contributions to match that. As Director Buschatzke has mentioned, the CAP has already put up some 

money, as I think California has as well. But we are hopeful that 

others will match that as well. 

Senator FLAKE. All right, thank you. 

Ms. Weldon, the Subcommittee received testimony on S. 982, the 

Water Rights Protection Act, last June. The language included in 

S. 2902 reflects a number of changes that were made based on testimony from that hearing. 

I understand that your testimony states that, ‘‘USDA has not 

had time to fully analyze the effect of this bill,’’ and that the 

USDA’s concern is with the prohibitions that would regulate uses 

of National Forest System lands. I believe the modified language 

incorporated in S. 2902 addresses these concerns and only limits a 

state water right, leaving land management decisions untouched. 

The question is, will you please commit to work with my office 

and highlight for us particular areas of concern in the legislation 


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that might prohibit the regulation of Forest Service land use, what 

concerns you about it? 

Ms. WELDON. Thank you, Senator Flake. 

We would be very happy to work with you and your staff to look 

at the changes that have been made. The overall concern would be 

if there were any provisions in the bill that would somehow reduce 

the ability for the Secretary and for the Forest Service to ensure 

that, as land use authorizations are occurring, they are being done 

in a way that protects water rights, but also ensures availability 

of water for a diversity of uses. So we would be happy to continue 

working with you and your staff on the language and the changes 

with this bill. 

Senator FLAKE. Thank you. 

Mr. Buschatzke, I have heard from a number of communities up 

and down the Gila River about the tamarisk problem that you 

mentioned. Can you talk a little more from what you did in your 

testimony about the challenges that the state faces from this 

invasive plant? 

Mr. BUSCHATZKE. Yes, Senator Flake. 

I think, as we heard from Senator McCain, there is great potential for water savings from salvage of removing tamarisk and replanting with riparian vegetation. I think the basin study, the Colorado River Basin Supply and Demand Study, uses a number of 

about 0.54 acre-feet per acre doing that salvage. I think additional 

study needs to be done to solidify that number. 

Some of the challenges of removing that tamarisk along with the 

Gila River are there are at least three species of birds—the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher, the Yellow-Billed Cuckoo, and the 

Yuma Clapper Rail—that are in danger that live in the tamarisk 

along the Gila River. Some of that tamarisk is also designated as 

critical habitat for that and other species, so removing it creates 

issues under the Endangered Species Act. We have Corps of Engineers 404 permitting issues as well. Then generally, in Arizona, 

with as much federal land as we have, the feds have an obligation 

to protect species, but often do not have the funding to really do 

some of the things that would help those species out. So lastly, we 

know that the tamarisk chokes our channels and creates additional 

flooding. It also limits the ability to use the channel to move water 

around Arizona. Under Arizona law, you can use a riverbed to 

transport water and keep your name on that water, so to speak. 

So we have lots of challenges, but a study that is in S. 2902 

might help create some methods moving forward to deal with some 

of these issues. I think there is some great potential there for Arizona to increase its water supplies through tamarisk control. 

Senator FLAKE. All right, thank you. I toured around Safford and 

Thatcher a while ago, and it is unbelievable how thick tamarisk is 

in the Gila there. It just makes it completely impassable, so it is 

a lot of work that needs to be done there. 

Mr. Lopez, as Tom Buschatzke said, one of Arizona’s planning 

successes has been the ability to store water, millions of acre-feet, 

underground. Last month, I toured a facility around Tucson storing 

Colorado River water. With the threat of storage declaration looming and the ability to recover and transport this stored groundwater that is critical, obviously, to Arizona’s water future, I wanted 


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to thank the Bureau for your ongoing work with CAP and the system use agreement that allows the kind of wheeling to happen. 

Can you give an update on the status of finalizing the system use 

agreement, including tribal consultation? 

Mr. LOPEZ. Senator Flake, I am not certain of the exact status 

of that. I know that there is a lot of work going on with it, including the consultation that you are talking about. Our regional staff 

is meeting with tribes and with CAP and working on those things, 

but I can try to find the exact status of it and submit it for the 

record, if you would like. 

Senator FLAKE. That would be helpful. 

Mr. LOPEZ. Senator Flake, I am assuming that you are referring 

to the wheeling agreements, correct? 

Senator FLAKE. Yes, I am. 

Mr. LOPEZ. Okay. 

Senator FLAKE. Thank you. 

Mr. Keppen, your testimony makes some comparisons between 

the various approaches taken in the different Colorado drought 

bills and their relative effectiveness in getting additional water to 

farmers. 

Can you explain the relative effectiveness of S. 1894 and S. 2533 

and H.R. 2898, particularly with regard to the guidance and flexibility that are provided to the agencies in each of these bills? 

Mr. KEPPEN. Sure. Again, I think H.R. 2898, the House bill, 

probably would better assist our producers in the Central Valley 

Project in dealing with ESA restrictions on water deliveries. But 

again, the challenge is getting language that deals with the ESA 

through the Senate. So that is the challenge that I think remains 

here for us to reach agreement. 

Senator FLAKE. Thank you. 

Senator Gardner will take over while I vote. Thanks again. 

Senator GARDNER [presiding]. I yield to Senator Daines for five 

minutes for questions. 

Senator DAINES. Thank you. Thanks to all of you for appearing 

before the Committee, particularly Ms. Ziemer. It is always good to 

have Montanans here in Washington, DC. Welcome. 

As we all know, water is a basic need of life. Despite this reality, 

there are still rural and tribal communities throughout Montana 

that face significant barriers to accessing clean and reliable sources 

of water. That is why I am proud to help introduce the Western 

Water Supply and Planning Enhancement Act that includes my 

provisions to authorize two critical rural water projects in Montana, the Dry-Redwater and the Musselshell-Judith Basin Projects, 

which would treat and deliver water to over 30,000 residents of 

central and eastern Montana and parts of North Dakota. 

This bill also includes other important provisions, including the 

IRRIGATE Act which would help facilitate irrigation projects 

throughout Indian country and the Water Rights Protection Act 

which would prevent Federal agencies from requiring businesses or 

landowners to transfer their water rights in exchange for renewing 

a permit or lease to utilize public lands. 

It is time the Federal Government fulfill its obligations and 

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ing to ensure our rural water projects are completed and our water 

rights are protected. 

A question for Ms. Weldon. Ms. Weldon, I understand you spent 

time in Missoula, Montana, where you served as the Regional Forester for the Forest Service Northern Region, so I am sure you 

know the issues regarding forest management and water quality in 

Montana communities. 

The Forest Service has classified 134 watersheds in Montana as 

impaired, which is the most severe condition. We need to restore 

these watersheds. It is why I strongly support the provision in Senator Flake’s legislation that provides new tools to swiftly implement watershed projects developed through a collaborative process. 

In fact, I urge the Administration to support these new tools. 

I am further told by the Forest Service that there are currently 

five projects in Montana that are designed primarily to restore watersheds. Two of these projects have faced litigation. There are an 

additional four active lawsuits against projects that would enhance 

watersheds as a byproduct of the projects’ integrated management. 

All of these projects were developed through a collaborative process. 

I would like to highlight one that is literally in my backyard. It 

is the Bozeman Municipal Watershed Project. I went to Bozeman 

from kindergarten all the way through college. This project was 

conceived in 2005, more than a decade ago, by the Forest Service 

and collaborative stakeholders working together, but it has been 

tied up in litigation now for years and was enjoined since 2013. 

Ms. Weldon, when a project is enjoined, that means work on the 

ground must stop. Is that right? 

Ms. WELDON. That is correct. 

Senator DAINES. What impacts can a delay in implementing a 

project have on the condition of an impaired watershed? 

Ms. WELDON. Thank you for your question, Senator Daines. 

I was actually able to walk the ground where this project is, the 

Bozeman Municipal Watershed Project, and understand the conditions that are faced there, the need for us to reduce the risk of losing portions of that watershed to wildfire and subsequent effects 

downstream for water quality and quantity. 

So when a project gets enjoined and must be stopped, what happens is that the good, collaborative agreement around the need and 

value for this restoration work to be done to protect water is delayed. Each summer, each season, we face the risk of increasing insect and disease infestation, and the continuing decline of condition 

and, of course, the threat of wildfire. One wildfire in an area where 

we have made the investment and have a good public support for 

doing this work can nullify that and increase the impacts to citizens to get clean water and the work that needs to be done to put 

those landscapes back together to have clean water again in the future. So the delays are a significant problem when we know that 

the work we would invest in would make a difference. 

Senator DAINES. We have had some fires recently that had it not 

been for maybe a wind change and so forth, we could have come 

through that watershed. In fact, we are the fastest growing county 

in Montana, Montana State University has 14,000 students in addition to 35,000 residents of Bozeman. 


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As I have noted these watershed-impacted lawsuits are made in 

Montana. They are working against made-in-Montana collaborative 

projects. I am a champion of collaboration, but I think you recognize it has not been a cure-all. The collaborative process has not 

been a cure-all to avoiding litigation in Montana, and we need to 

strengthen them. 

Ms. WELDON. Yes, I would say that collaboration does not prevent lawsuits but it changes the playing field. 

As our witness from Trout Unlimited said, the value of bringing 

people together around what is important and around the value of 

watersheds and forests is making a difference. And we are finding 

that, even as we have challenges, we have been better able to resolve them, working through collaboratives, than without having 

them. 

Senator DAINES. I am a big supporter of incentivizing collaboratives. We are seeing it is absolutely a step in the right direction. It just has been insufficient at times. It is not the absolute 

cure-all. We need to continue to work here on stopping some of this 

litigation that stops good, made-in-Montana collaborative projects. 

Thank you very much for your testimony. 

Ms. WELDON. Thank you. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you, Senator Daines. Again, thank you 

to all of you for being here today. 

Mr. Long, thank you very much for coming all the way from Colorado to serve on the panel today and for your testimony. Bill has 

worked with the Southeast Colorado Water Conservancy District 

for over a decade and serves as the President for the Southeast 

Colorado Water Conservancy District, a County Commissioner from 

Bent County, and a business owner in Bent County. I appreciate 

the work you have done with Fort Lyon to facilitate opportunities 

for treatment to our veterans and a number of the other policies 

and issues that you have taken up in southeastern Colorado, and 

particularly the Arkansas Valley Conduit, which you are going to 

discuss today and have discussed today. 

For the information of the members of the Committee and those 

here, the Arkansas Valley Conduit, as Mr. Long eloquently stated, 

is a water project that will allow for the delivery of clean, abundant, affordable water to southeastern Colorado’s rural communities. It is the final major component of the Fryingpan-Arkansas 

Project which was first authorized under John F. Kennedy in the 

1960s. 

In fiscal year 2016, $2.5 million was appropriated for the project. 

In fiscal year 2017, the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations legislation contained an additional $3 million for the 

project. 

You have outlined a number of concerns with the drinking water 

in Southeast Colorado today. You mentioned water quality concerns, and you discussed the current status of the Arkansas Valley 

Conduit. Could you talk a little bit about the timeline moving forward, perhaps if this legislation passes and perhaps if it does not? 

Mr. LONG. Regardless of this legislation, final feasibility will be 

complete September of this calendar year, 2016. Should this bill be 

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sign and engineering will be complete in 2018 and construction 

could begin as early as fiscal year 2019. 

Senator GARDNER. Very good. How would the passage of this legislation and continued federal investment in the project impact the 

timeline? 

Mr. LONG. Senator Gardner, without this legislation, the miscellaneous revenues and the ability to partner with the State of 

Colorado, it will be very difficult for this very low-income area of 

Colorado to construct the project to meet federally-mandated water 

quality standards. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you, Mr. Long. 

The federal interest in the project, if you could address that and 

why it is important for Congress and the Bureau of Reclamation 

to continue to invest in the conduit? I think you laid it out very 

clearly in your testimony. 

Mr. LONG. We believe Congress has recognized the need for communities to meet federally-mandated water quality standards that 

protect public health, and we agree. The project will ensure that 

federal standards are met and safe water is provided to our residents. 

It also will ensure that our wastewater streams that we are very 

challenged with right now are met as well, so it really takes care 

of a couple issues that are extremely challenging to virtually every 

community in the Lower Arkansas Valley. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you. 

Again, I think this is part of the project authorized in the early 

1960s under John F. Kennedy, and it is time we move forward on 

this bill. 

I know that we have been working very closely with the Bureau 

of Reclamation. Deputy Secretary Mike Connor was here February 

23rd and answered questions where he committed continued support of the Arkansas Valley Conduit. He also specifically stated 

that the concept laid out in the legislation that we are talking 

about today was a very good plan when it comes to the financing 

of the project. 

So my question to Mr. Lopez, when the Bureau of Reclamation 

issued the record of decision on this project in 2014, did they find 

that this project was sound and should move forward? 

Mr. LOPEZ. Senator, yes. We think this is a worthy project. Obviously, it is taking care of a water quality problem that is affecting 

a large number of communities, so I think it is an important 

project that we continue to support. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you very much, sir. 

If enacted, do you believe legislation under consideration will assist in getting the Arkansas Valley Conduit constructed as expeditiously as possible? 

Mr. LOPEZ. I do. Given the constrained budgets that we are 

working with, there are not many avenues other than something 

like the legislation that you have introduced for us to get something built timely. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you, Mr. Lopez. 

Mr. Long, thank you for being here today. 

It is just absolutely critically important. We are talking about 

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kansas River. We are talking about economic opportunity for people 

who live along the river. When we talk about the need for this area 

and the economy and what drives this economy, clean, abundant 

water is the building block of revitalizing all of Colorado, but particularly southeastern Colorado, so thank you for your passionate 

testimony today. 

Ms. Weldon, when Congress designated the Holy Cross Wilderness Area in 1980, the Bolts Ditch headgate and approximately 450 

feet of the Bolts Ditch were inadvertently included within the 

boundary. The headgate and ditch have been used by the community of Minturn to fill Bolts Lake, which is outside the wilderness 

area. 

Passing the Bolts Ditch Access and Use Act is important to provide clarity to the town of Minturn, to ensure that they can utilize 

their existing water rights and can access the ditch and headgate 

within the wilderness area for the purpose of maintenance and repair. 

In your testimony, you state that you do not oppose the legislation, that USDA does not oppose the legislation. Could you elaborate on why the legislation is necessary in this case to allow for 

Minturn to assert their long-held water rights? 

Ms. WELDON. Yes, and we appreciate the language here in the 

bill that is reaching in to resolve one of the stipulations of the global settlement decree around resolving this issue. This bill will help 

to get a solution that is really clearly supported by Eagle County, 

Colorado River District, as well as the river advocacy groups, to 

allow us to move forward with continuing with this operation 

under a special use permit and to ensure that we are doing that 

work in the context of the requirements of the Wilderness Act. 

Senator GARDNER. Thank you very much, Ms. Weldon. 

Dr. Quinn, I had a question for you, but we are out of time. As 

an economist, I was hoping you would explain to this Committee 

how water can flow uphill to money, but we are out of time, so 

thanks very much for the opportunity. 

Senator Barrasso. 

Senator BARRASSO. Well, thank you very much. 

I also would like to thank Senator Flake for introducing S. 2902, 

the Western Water Supply and Planning Enhancement Act of 2016. 

He has done it with me and my Western colleagues, Senators 

Daines, Risch, Heller, and McCain. This bill is a collaboration of 

months of work between our offices, most of whom are members of 

the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. 

At a time when water issues have made the forefront of the 

headlines in places like California and Flint, Michigan, the water 

supply needs of the West as a whole can be forgotten by those who 

did not live where we live. The bill that we introduced addresses 

the need of an abundant, consistent and clean supply of water for 

all of our communities. Most of these communities in the West are 

rural and they are agricultural-based communities, as Pat O’Toole 

who is here from Wyoming clearly knows. 

Working families operate ranches and farms and depend on 

water for their livestock, to grow crops such as alfalfa and to feed 

herds of cattle. The water resources in the West have always been 

scarce and demands on the scarce supplies continue to increase. 


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We have more people moving to the West to live, to work, and 

to raise their families. We have more regulations coming from 

Washington, putting restrictions on where water can go, sometimes 

in favor of species as opposed to working families. 

Weather events such as drought only make our water needs even 

greater. 

The proposals contained in S. 2902, the Western Water Supply 

and Planning Enhancement Act, seek to provide more water for our 

communities. The legislation includes bills that I have authored 

and introduced that will fix aging water infrastructure, such as: irrigation canals that serve our ranching communities; create efficiencies in federal permitting of new water storage through better 

coordination of federal agencies; compile the maintenance backlog 

of Bureau of Reclamation agency aging facilities, so Congress can 

actually begin to address them; and protect existing water rights 

from federal overreach for water users. There are many other provisions authored by my colleagues in the bill that are going to develop long-term water supplies and enhance the use of existing 

water supply infrastructure. I think it is important to note that the 

bill has $715 million in new authorization that is fully offset with 

$721 million in reduced mandatory spending. This is a very needed 

bill for the West and my home State of Wyoming, and I urge the 

Committee markup of this legislation occur soon, as quickly as possible. 

So I have a couple questions. 

One to Dan, if you could talk about how vital it is in terms of 

increasing water storage and maintaining aging federal irrigation 

structures for ranchers and farmers in the West and rural communities? And how does an economically strong, productive rural West 

benefit communities outside of the West? 

Mr. KEPPEN. I guess I will answer your last question first. The 

irrigated agriculture industry in the Western United States, which 

is comprised of growers and producers and implement dealers and 

food processors, is a $172 billion boost to our economy every year— 

and I mentioned this in testimony earlier today—because of that, 

in part, Americans spend less of their disposable income on food 

than anywhere on the planet. It is like 8 percent, compared to 

other countries that might be 20 percent to 30 percent. As I understand it, I am not an economist, but I understand that consumer 

spending is a very important part of a healthy economy. So irrigated agriculture and the communities that they support in the 

West obviously are a big part of that. 

What we have seen in recent years, to get to your first question, 

Senator Barrasso, is we have expanding demand going on in other 

sectors. We have a growing population. We have different societal 

priorities placed on environmental needs. And when you look at the 

reality of how many dam projects that have been built or storage 

projects that have been built in the last 30 years, it has been almost nil. Metropolitan has done it in California. But if there is any 

kind of a federal nexus involved, it is very difficult because of the 

permitting issues. 

Unfortunately, what is happening is agricultural water is turning out to be the default reservoir to meet these other growing demands. That is a real concern. 


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We have to feed the world. We have to continue to have a safe 

and secure food supply for our own country, and those things could 

be threatened at some point if we do not start creating storage to 

meet these other demands. Agriculture is not really the cause for 

expanding demands right now. 

Senator BARRASSO. Commissioner Lopez, could you talk about 

how important it is that Congress address the maintenance backlog 

of Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs and the dams and other infrastructure in the West, to ensure that water supplies in the region 

are there in the decades to come? 

Mr. LOPEZ. Senator, thank you for that question. 

Reclamation has something like $100 billion worth of infrastructure that we operate and maintain. Quite a lot of that infrastructure is now over 50 years old, some of it is over 100 years old. So 

it is imperative that if we want to continue to maintain the benefits that we have gotten from this infrastructure, which have been 

vast, we have to continue to maintain it. 

Beyond that, it is the sort of infrastructure that, if it is not maintained, ultimately, it could create problems and safety hazards for 

our communities, so that is another reason. 

I thank you for your legislation and the Transparency Act that 

has really helped us focus our efforts on how we categorize infrastructure maintenance needs, and thank you for working with us 

on getting that. I think we are now on track so we can begin to 

develop that information. 

Senator BARRASSO. Dan, one last question for you. 

In your written testimony, it says, ‘‘There can be no doubt that 

these environmental laws have provided significant benefits to our 

society.’’ You go on to say, ‘‘But they also have been used as legal 

weapons to thwart new investments in Western water development, to reallocate existing water supplies away from traditional 

uses, and to destabilize water supply systems,’’ and you go on to 

testify, ‘‘often in pursuit of unattainable goals such as resurrecting 

past ecological conditions in a constantly changing environment.’’ 

Can you give us an example or two of what you mean and what 

you have seen? 

Mr. KEPPEN. I will give you two. 

One briefly is Klamath where I live, Klamath Basin of Southern 

Oregon and Northern California. 

I guess I will elaborate more on the second example, which is 

really kind of the focus of what some of this legislation is all about, 

the Central Valley Project in California. 

We have seen essentially large amounts of water that were originally designed for irrigation purposes stored in the Central Valley 

Project facilities now being left to basically go out through the 

Golden Gate Bridge to benefit a couple of species protected under 

the Endangered Species Act, the Delta smelt and some salmon. 

Unfortunately, when you look at how those numbers are actually 

reacting, the population reacting to those actions, the numbers are 

actually declining. Really, the focus in Bay-Delta management has 

been kind of on these export pumps that divert water out of the 

Delta to meet Southern California needs and Central Valley irrigation needs. We are not really seeing the results. 


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That is probably the frustrating thing that we are seeing right 

now. The focus is on these irrigation diversions. The fish species 

they are intending to protect are not showing any signs of recovery 

whatsoever, so there are other stressors out there that we have to 

deal with. I would say, again, that is a prime example, because a 

lot of those decisions that are moving the water from agriculture 

into the ocean system are driven by litigation involving the Endangered Species Act. 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator FLAKE. Thank you, Senator Barrasso. 

Thank you all for your testimony today. Again, I apologize for the 

chaotic nature of some of these hearings when we have votes going 

on. I appreciate your indulgence. 

Obviously, drought and water issues are critical to the future of 

our states. I am hopeful that the Committee will build on the hearing today, as we build a West-wide drought bill that can pass not 

only this Committee, but the Senate floor as well. So thank you for 

your testimony. It will be very valuable for us. 

For the information of members, questions may be submitted for 

the record before the close of business on Thursday. The record will 

remain open for two weeks. We ask the witnesses to respond as 

promptly as possible to questions that are asked, and your responses will be made part of the record. 

Senator FLAKE. With the thanks of the Committee, this hearing 

stands adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 3:47 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.] 


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APPENDIX MATERIAL SUBMITTED 


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lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 304 here 21987A.206
243 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 305 here 21987A.207
244 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 306 here 21987A.208
245 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 307 here 21987A.209
246 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 308 here 21987A.210
247 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 309 here 21987A.211
248 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 310 here 21987A.212
249 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 311 here 21987A.213
250 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 312 here 21987A.214
251 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 313 here 21987A.215
252 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 314 here 21987A.216
253 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 315 here 21987A.217
254 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 316 here 21987A.218
255 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 317 here 21987A.219
256 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 318 here 21987A.220
257 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 319 here 21987A.221
258 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 320 here 21987A.222
259 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 321 here 21987A.223
260 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 325 here 21987A.227
261 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 326 here 21987A.228
262 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 327 here 21987A.229
263 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 328 here 21987A.230
264 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 329 here 21987A.231
265 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 330 here 21987A.232
266 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 331 here 21987A.233
267 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 332 here 21987A.234
268 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 333 here 21987A.235
269 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 334 here 21987A.236
270 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 335 here 21987A.237
271 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 336 here 21987A.238
272 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 337 here 21987A.239
273 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 338 here 21987A.240
274 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 339 here 21987A.241
275 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 340 here 21987A.242
276 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 341 here 21987A.243
277 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 342 here 21987A.244
278 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 343 here 21987A.245
279 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 344 here 21987A.246
280 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 345 here 21987A.247
281 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 346 here 21987A.248
282 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 347 here 21987A.249
283 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 348 here 21987A.250
284 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 349 here 21987A.251
285 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 350 here 21987A.252
286 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 351 here 21987A.253
287 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 352 here 21987A.254
288 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 353 here 21987A.255
289 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 354 here 21987A.256
290 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 355 here 21987A.257
291 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 356 here 21987A.258
292 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 357 here 21987A.259
293 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 358 here 21987A.260
294 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 359 here 21987A.261
295 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 360 here 21987A.262
296 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 361 here 21987A.263
297 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 362 here 21987A.264
298 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 363 here 21987A.265
299 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 364 here 21987A.266
300 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 365 here 21987A.267
301 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 366 here 21987A.268
302 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 367 here 21987A.269
303 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 368 here 21987A.270
304 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 369 here 21987A.271
305 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with HEARINGInsert offset folio 370 here 21987A.272