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Special meeting called for Fisherman Bay Water Association

posted 12/11/03
Questions about the impact of expansion of the Fisherman Bay Water Association have led to the scheduling of a special meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 15 at the Lopez Senior Center (downstairs at the main Fire Hall). Concerns about growth in Lopez Village will be addressed.

The questions to be addressed are:

  1. What are the financial implications to the membership of the system?
  2. How will the Village Water Plan protect and preserve the water resource; What assurances can the Board provide that the water supply will be adequate to meet projected needs?
  3. How will the Board decision-making that accommodates growth be reflective of the will of the membership; under what circumstances does the membership have a right to vote on issues?
  4. What is the Association's obligation in a UGA (Urban Growth Area)? How will this affect the water use of members.

Lopez water planning moves on to phase 2

posted 09/25/03
In a split vote, San Juan County Commissioners agreed to move ahead to the second stage of planning regarding water in Lopez Village. Commissioners Darcie Nielsen and Rhea Miller approved the plan presented Sept. 25, 2003. Phase two includes creation of a comprehensive water system plan for Lopez Village. The plan will list the necessary infrastructure and the costs.

Commissioner John Evans praised the work of the citizens and staff which produced the report. He objected to the use of county funds to pay for the water plan.

Miller noted the plan is needed by the county for growth management purposes. The plan will take information from the Fisherman Bay Water District and the several Class A and B water systems which now serve Lopez Village. The county's plan focuses on the coordination of the systems. The individual systems still have obligations to do their own planning.

A decision to create an urban growth area in Lopez Village has already been made. The water comprehensive plan will let the community know if it can afford the UGA. Evans wanted to make sure the plan did not lock the county into creating the UGA.

Vicki Heater, Environmental Health Specialist, presented an overview of the two-year process the committee went through to determine if enough water existed to serve growth in the village. She quoted the late Gene Richey who led the group. He said, "There may be enough resilience in the groundwater supply to allow for an adaptive management approach." Such an approach regularly reviews the situation in light of new information and makes changes if necessary.

Heater presented the three main outcomes of the group effort.

1. Establish a long-term monitoring program to develop an accurate picture of aquifer capacity and characteristics.

  • One year of monitoring and a preliminary groundwater model are just the beginning.

  • Five to six years of data collection are needed to get a realistic picture.

  • On-going monitoring is needed to detect changes in aquifer conditions before degradation occurs.

  • Using chloride as an indicator is hit and miss: either degradation has already occurred, has not occurred yet and therefore goes undetected, or the chloride levels are a false reading due to other factors than seawater intrusion.

2. Establish a local water users association to oversee monitoring and management of the resource, share experience and costs, and participate in the decision-making process with state and county agencies..

  • This organization will consist of water system managers and private well owners in the area.

  • The association will take the lead in monitoring and collecting water use data and act as the governing agency for water management.

  • The association will operate as a public body, representing all water users on Lopez.

3. Establish an adaptive management process where water resource capacity and current water needs are used to calculate population projections used by the county to determine growth capacity.

  • This process would involve a review every five years.

  • This process allows growth to occur while keeping a careful eye on the resource to prevent impairment of existing water users.

  • This process is an important outcome for the area to address build-out, independent of final decisions regarding the Lopez Village urban growth area.

James Smith of Lopez Island spoke at the public hearing against approval of the report. He believed more data was needed.

Jamie Stephens who served as chair of the committee, noted the need to move ahead. Some business people were moving out of the Village because of their frustration with the uncertainty of when the planning would be concluded.

The commissioners approval of the report and its recommendations was made pending the completion of the SEPA report. The formal vote will take place October 28, 2003, after the SEPA report is received. Once the final approval of the report is done, it should take about six more months to finish the comprehensive water plan, according to Environmental Health Manager Mark Tompkins.

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