Opposition from irrigators scuttles deal with Pocatello

By SEAN ELLIS

Capital Press

POCATELLO, Idaho -- A southeast Idaho irrigation company's $24 million plan to conserve water by relining and straightening its canal system is dead.

The plan fell apart after a water rights transfer deal with the city of Pocatello was canceled because of opposition from other irrigators in the region.

Pocatello agreed last year to pay Portneuf-Marsh Valley Canal Co. $6.2 million in exchange for 3,100 acre-feet of storage water rights in Chesterfield Reservoir.

The canal company had planned to use the money to provide a local match for $18 million in federal conservation grant money that would have enabled it to reline its canal system with concrete to stop seepage.

It also planned to straighten the canal, which was built in 1907 using horses, so water could be delivered more efficiently.

Pocatello Mayor Brian Blad said both sides agreed to file a notice with the IDWR to withdraw the application when "it became apparent to the city and the ... canal company board of directors that the legal issues raised before the IDWR would not be resolved in a (timely) manner."

While Pocatello will seek other avenues to obtain water, the canal relining project is dead because the company can't afford the required local match.

"Obviously, without the sale to the city, they would not have the ability to fund their portion of the project," said attorney Randy Budge, who represented the canal company on the issue. "It was a great project and a great idea, but ... they're a small canal company and there was no way they could do that."

The company, which has more than 16,000 acre-feet of storage rights in Chesterfield, had planned to save enough water through efficiency improvements to make up for the water it would sell to Pocatello.

Pocatello had hoped the deal would ensure it had enough water to facilitate future growth and meet federal rules that require water in the Portneuf River to meet quality and temperature standards.

But both sides agreed to end the deal after it became apparent they faced a lengthy legal battle from other irrigators who were concerned about how it might affect their water rights.

The deal, reached last year, was contingent on Idaho Department of Water Resources approval.

Letters of protest were filed with the IDWR by irrigation companies and individuals with water rights on both the Portneuf and Snake River systems.

The possibility of additional flooding caused by water being sent downstream to Pocatello was also a concern. The city of Inkom, which is between Chesterfield and Pocatello, is the site of almost annual flooding.

Others were concerned about the general idea of transferring an agricultural water right to municipal use.

Twin Falls Canal Co. filed a protest because it was unclear from the application how the deal would impact its water rights, general manager Brian Olmstead said.

"We couldn't tell by the data provided whether it might be better or worse for our water rights," he said. "If there were new uses, and the water went to city facilities, it might never come back to us."