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DateNameCompanyComment
 Tom SharpOregon Cattlemens AssociationSeptember 1, 2021 Mr. Craig Kohanek, Water Rights Analyst Oregon Water Resources Department 725 Summer St. NE, Suite A Salem, OR 97301 Re: Comments on ODFW’s In-Stream Water Rights applications: • Application IS-89082 – Sixes River #3 • Application IS-89074 – East Fork Coquille River The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association (“OCA”) was founded in 1913 and advocates on behalf of ranchers and their families to ensure continued success of their operations and contributions to Oregon communities. OCA is committed to sustaining the economic and cultural tradition of caring for Oregon’s working lands while producing one of the State’s top agricultural commodities. Water resources are of the utmost importance to OCA’s members. We appreciate the opportunity to comment on Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (ODFW) In-Stream Water Rights (ISWRs) applications for IS-89082 – Sixes River #3 and IS-89074 – East Fork Coquille River. We oppose the granting of ISWRs to ODFW for the above referenced applications in OWRD’s Southwest Region. We are concerned about the potential injury to existing water right holders, the possible limitation grant of those ISWRs would have on future development in these areas, and the questionable availability of water these ISWRs are seeking. We are concerned regarding the damage granting of ISRWs could cause by limiting transferability of existing water rights. There is also a concern about the limitation on the movement of the point of diversion where ISRWs are granted. We can foresee the possible claim of injury ODFW could make that could prevent transfer of existing water rights or require unreasonable mitigation. Such mitigation often results in a portion of the transferred water rights being dedicated to additional ISWRs. We also want to raise the concern that the water ODFW is requesting in these ISWRs does not actually exist. Some streams have low volumes in the summer and others now go dry in the summer. It would be irresponsible to grant ISRWs for water that will never be in the system. We believe that granting of these ISWRs will have an adverse impact on the economy of the area. Based on the information we have provided, the ISWRs should not be granted.
 Quincy PowersPowers Ranch Co.RE: Objection to ODFW’s In-Stream Water Right Application IS-89082 – Sixes River Thank you for the opportunity to comment on IS-89082 In-Stream Water Right (ISWR) application submitted by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW). Approximately 75% of the 2-mile reach identified in IS-89082 flows through Powers Ranch Company (PRC) property. PRC is a family-owned corporation and have operated our cattle and timber operation on this property since 1913. PRC opposes ODFW’s application IS-89092 due to the injury to PRC’s pre-1909 surface water claim, restrictions on future development of the resource, and deficiencies within ODFW’s application. ODFW claims ISWRs do not take away or impair any existing water right on the basis that the ISWRs are junior rights to any existing water right already on the system. The approval of IS-89082 would give ODFW the ability to claim injury to their ISWR if PRC were to transfer the point of diversion from certain stream reaches in our pre-1909 surface water claim to certain defined points. These claims to injury often result in ODFW mitigation plans that can diminish the original water right quantity and increase the cost to the transfer applicant. IS-89082 will prevent future development of this public resource by claiming all water identified as available for out-of-stream appropriation according to OWRD’s water availability model. This will prevent any future development of the public resource. PRC believes several sections of IS-89082 are inadequately justified for the application to be reasonably approved. To begin with, the South Coast Basin Investigation Report (BIR) is dated 1972, it would stand to reason that ODFW has gathered more pertinent and current data to inform decision making with. Section 6 states the methods used to determine the requested flows requires repeated measurements at different flows. PRC questions ODFW’s ability to do so, this headwater section of the Sixes River is many miles from any public road, and PRC has never granted ODFW access to this non-navigable reach. Furthermore, the upper half of the reach identified in IS-89082 is completely inaccessible with impenetrable walls of brush and berries on both sides. The application fails to identify any methodologies for measuring, monitoring, or enforcing the subsequent ISWR. This lack of identifying monitoring methodologies is worsened by the unrealistic flows in OWRD’s initial review, where summer flow far exceeds historical observations by PRC. The upper half of the proposed reach is completely dry for 4 months out of the year July-Oct., and the BIR identifies the Sixes River as containing, “extensive porous gravel beds through which summer flows frequently sub-out”. A simple drainage area analysis shows that the drainage area approximately doubles from the top to the bottom of the reach, this change in drainage area changes the expected flow. Both the change in flow throughout the 2-mile reach and how frequently the reach subs-out warrants identifying how the ISWR would be monitored and enforced. IS-89082 appears to be a blind grab for all of the resource based on poorly modeled natural flow and no physical measurements, with no consideration to the actual availability of water and no concern for all uses of the public resource. Sincerely, Quincy Powers President – Powers Ranch Company