Klamath farmers will see fraction of water needs

An operations plan released Thursday for a drought-stressed federal irrigation project in the upper Klamath Basin offered no new hope for farmers struggling to find water for their crops. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said farmers on the 200,000 acres irrigated by the Klamath Reclamation Project can expect 30 percent to 40 percent of normal deliveries this summer. The deliveries would start by May 15 -- six weeks late. The cutbacks were triggered by drought and Endangered Species Act requirements involving protected fish. Federal grants are paying for extra well water and for farmers to leave land dry, but about a third of the project area is still looking for water or money. Many farmers have gone outside the project to rent land with wells. Farmer Rob Unruh in Malin said the irrigation districts he relies on inside the project will be dry this year after officials agreed to land-idling payments, so he will use well water to irrigate his potatoes. Klamath Project water that would be available will probably be too little and come too late to save his grain, he said...more