Washington Administrative Code › Title 173 - Ecology, Department of (See also Titles 197, 317, 372, and 508) › Chapter 173-509 - Instream resources protection program - Green-Duwamish River basin, water resource inventory area (WRIA) 9 › Section 173-509-030 - Establishment of instream flows

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
(1)
			 Instream flows are established for stream management units with monitoring to
			 take place at certain control stations as follows:
STREAM MANAGEMENT UNIT INFORMATION
Control Station No.
Stream Management
Unit Name
Control Station
by River Mile and
Section, Township
and Range
Affected Stream
Reach Including
Tributaries
12.1130.00
Green River near Auburn, WA
32.0
17-21-5
From influence of mean annual high tide at low
							 instream flow levels (approximately River Mile 11.0) to USGS Gage
							 #12.1067.000
12.1067.00
Green River near Palmer, WA
60.4
13-21-7
From USGS Gage #12.1067.000 to headwaters.
The Palmer gage will be used to condition future water rights
				upstream from that gage. The Auburn gage will be used to condition future water
				right appropriations downstream from the Palmer gage. If it becomes necessary
				to change a control station location to improve measurement accuracy or
				management capability, the department shall do so under provisions in WAC
				173-500-060(6).
(2) Instream flows established for the stream
			 management units in WAC
			 173-509-030(1) are as follows:
INSTREAM FLOWS FOR FUTURE WATER RIGHTS IN THE
GREEN-DUWAMISH RIVER BASIN
(in Cubic Feet per Second)
Month
Day
12,1130.00
Normal Year
Green River
Near Auburn
12,1067.00
Normal Year
Green River
Near Palmer
12.1067.00
Critical Year
Green River
Near Palmer
Jan.
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
Feb.
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
Mar.
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
Apr.
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
May
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
June
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
210
July
1
550
300
150
15
300
150
150
Aug.
1
300
150
150
15
300
150
150
Sept.
1
300
150
150
15
300
150
150
Oct.
1
300
190
150
15
350
240
150
Nov.
1
550
300
190
15
550
300
240
Dec.
1
650
300
300
15
650
300
300
(a) Future water
			 right holders subject to regulation by the Palmer gage will not be allowed to
			 continue diversions when flows fall below the normal year instream flows at the
			 Palmer gage unless a critical condition is declared by the director. The
			 director, or his designee, may authorize, in consultation with the state
			 departments of fisheries and wildlife, a reduction in instream flows during a
			 critical condition period. At no time will diversions subject to regulation by
			 the Palmer gage be continued when flows fall below the critical year instream
			 flows at Palmer. At no time will diversions subject to regulation by the Auburn
			 gage be continued when flows fall below the normal year instream flows at
			 Auburn. When a declaration of overriding considerations of public interest is
			 made by the director, these requirements may be modified or waived. A
			 declaration of overriding consideration because of drought conditions shall not
			 be made when natural flows equal or exceed the one-in-fifty year low flow
			 condition. The director shall consult with the directors of the state
			 departments of wildlife and fisheries before making a declaration of overriding
			 consideration. Any declaration of critical conditions or overriding
			 considerations of public interest made by the director shall be communicated to
			 all basin resource agencies, water purveyors, and local general purpose
			 governments, and include the reason for such declaration and its expected
			 duration.
(b) The director will
			 consider declaring a critical period when:
(1)
			 In the spring the basin runoff volume forecast of May 1 is not adequate to meet
			 the sum of any rights which the city of Tacoma may have established through
			 historical usage prior to the adoption of this regulation plus the normal year
			 instream flows plus the volume required to replenish the conservation
			 storage.
(2) In the summer and fall
			 the sum of the reservoir inflows extrapolated from current observations plus
			 the volume of water in storage at Howard A. Hanson Dam is not adequate to meet
			 the sum of any rights which the city of Tacoma may have established through
			 historical usage prior to the adoption of this regulation plus the normal year
			 instream flows. Within five days the director will inform the major affected
			 water right holders of the extent of the allowed deviation from the normal year
			 instream flows. Once a deviation from normal year instream flows is allowed,
			 the water resources shall be evaluated at least every seven days to see if
			 additional deviation is warranted. Before allowing deviation from the normal
			 year instream flows, water conservation practices and use of other sources
			 shall be considered.
(c)
			 In addition to other necessary provisions, any diversion of the natural flow,
			 including diversion to storage under future water rights shall cease (or be
			 regulated to the extent necessary) when the flow at the applicable control
			 station falls below (or is less than) the instream flows established by this
			 regulation and made a condition of said future water right. Said future water
			 rights are subject to the rights and authority of the Corps of Engineers to
			 utilize for storage and conservation flows, the natural inflow to the Howard A.
			 Hanson reservoir and to all other prior water right holders' authorized use of
			 natural flows, including any rights that the city of Tacoma may have
			 established through historical usage. The use of stored waters is not to be
			 impaired, limited, or diminished by this regulation.
The department recognizes that from time to time the Corps of
				Engineers may establish a minimum reservoir level which is necessary to provide
				conservation flows with a high measure of assurance. When the reservoir falls
				below this level it may be necessary for the Corps of Engineers to replenish
				conservation storage. When this occurs, water rights subject to the provisions
				of this chapter may be temporarily regulated or diminished and the actual
				stream discharge diminished.