Officials push Long Lake plans,
Water storage sought for valley The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation received approval to conduct a feasibility study of the area’s water storage capabilities. The study will cost $ 2 million and take three years, regional director Pablo Arroyave said. The bureau also started the approval process needed for a water storage site. Efforts to convert the valley into water storage have been ongoing for decades, but picked up in the recent months after visits with staff in Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s office and with other state officials.
Could curtail shortages Klamath
County officials and others concerned with issues ranging from endangered
fish species to irrigation advocated for the project because of its
potential to curtail water shortages in the Klamath Basin such as the one
that shut off irrigation water in 2001. The valley is a popular choice
because of its proximity to Upper Klamath Lake, as well as attributes that
would make it an ideal reservoir. It also could hold the equivalent
acre-feet of water that Upper Klamath Lake does, but with less surface area
— thus reducing evaporative loss. Work on the project is far in the future,
with Klamath County Commissioner John Elliott saying that the earliest
possible date to begin physical work on the site is in 2011. But Elliott
said he is optimistic about the project and considers it one of the top
priorities of the county. “We’re going to have a lot of players in this
one,” he said. “A lot of people involved.”
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