How Central Oregon is coming together to meet challenges related to scarce water resources, worsening drought

This is a rebroadcast of OPB radio show, Think Out Loud, recorded on March 1, 2024. CLICK TO LISTEN

The Deschutes Basin Water Collaborative draws together water users In Central Oregon who are often put in the position of competing for water. Irrigators, fish and wildlife advocates and managers, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, cities and county residents using groundwater from private wells have been working together for more than 20 years with notable successes. Those include funding and implementing programs that have both preserved water for agriculture and provided for drinking water and fish and wildlife. The collaborative model is different from other kinds of negotiating, like mediation or lawmaking. But ongoing drought conditions are posing challenges that even those with decades of experience managing water resources have not faced. We talked with those integrally involved with and affected by water supply and water policy in front of an audience in an event space overlooking the Deschutes River.

We bring you that conversation, slightly edited for clarity and brevity, with: Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler and utility director Mike Buettner; Redmond Mayor Ed Fitch; Deschutes County Commissioner Phil Chang; Bobby Brunoe, CEO for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and one of the co-chairs of the Deschutes Basin Water Collaborative; Kate Fitzpatrick, executive director of the Deschutes River Conservancy; farmers in two different irrigation districts in the Basin, Phil Fine and Matt Lisignoli; and Tod Heisler, River Advocate with Central Oregon Landwatch. This show is the last in our solution-oriented series funded by the Oregon Community Foundation.