Speak Up Now for Improved Groundwater Management
The second of four OWRD public meetings on the agency's proposed groundwater allocation revisions was held last night in La Grande, and will be followed by two more meetings in May: at the Jackson County Auditorium in Central Point on Thursday, May 16th, and the final meeting at the North Mall Office Building in Salem on Tuesday, May 21st, which will also feature a virtual option. Visit WaterWatch.org for times, addresses, and talking points, and don't forget to submit written comments on the revised rules to the OWRD before May 31st.

Watch Video of WaterWatch's Lovelace Dam Removal
Thanks to project partner Rogue River Watershed Council for this new video detailing WaterWatch's fourth removal of a fish-blocking dam on Slate Creek in the last three years, and our fifth dam removed in the wider Rogue River Basin over the same period. The removal of Lovelace Dam significantly improved access to approximately 26 miles of spawning and rearing habitat for salmon and steelhead in Slate Creek, and the clip features remarks from WaterWatch's Southern Oregon Program Director Jim McCarthy and other project partners.

Bend Bulletin Details Growing Groundwater Crisis
According to an article in the Bend Bulletin last weekend, hydrologists and community leaders in Central Oregon are sounding the alarm over the decline and loss of groundwater, with the discharge at the headwaters of the Metolius River down 55 percent over the past six years, while water pumped from underground aquifers "is far outpacing what nature can replace through precipitation." As noted above, the OWRD continues to weigh proposed revised groundwater rules to curb groundwater losses due to over-allocation.

Writers On the Fly to Make Stops in Ashland and Eugene
A reading series featuring fly fishing writers and authors, Writers On the Fly will make two stops in Oregon this month, including Ashland on Friday, April 26th, and Eugene on Saturday, April 27th, featuring Patagonia fly fish ambassador Riverhorse Nakadate, poet Anne Landfield, travel writer Jessica Maxwell, Grants Pass artist and fly fishing guide James Sampsel, and Springfield writer and Trout Unlimited Resides Chapter president Jesse L. Robbins. The events will also raise funds for The Steamboaters and McKenzie River Trust.

Spring Instream Arriving in Mailboxes Now
The latest issue of WaterWatch's Instream newsletter is arriving in mailboxes, featuring a recap of Oregon's short legislative session, our recent win in the Malheur Lakes Basin, the latest on our Willamette River thermal trading case, the state's revised groundwater allocation rules proposal, the ongoing Integrated Water Resources Strategy (IWRS) draft update process, and regular Instream columns like Stream of Consciousness and Water Briefs. Previous issues of Instream remain available at WaterWatch.org.