Drought in the Klamath River Basin

Drought in the Klamath River Basin

link to page 2

INSIGHTi

Drought in the Klamath River Basin
Updated March 2, 2022
Historic drought conditions in the Klamath River Basin (Figure 1) have received national attention and
have led to increased conflicts among water users and other stakeholders. The basin includes the Bureau
of Reclamation’s Klamath Project, which delivers irrigation water to approximately 230,000 acres in
Southern Oregon and Northern California. The Klamath Basin has a history of controversies related to
water allocation and species protection. In the past, these issues have generated conflict among farmers,
Indian tribes, fishermen, water project and wildlife refuge managers, environmental groups, hydropower
facility operators, and state and local governments.
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
IN11689
CRS INSIGHT
Prepared for Members and
Committees of Congress

Congressional Research Service
2
Figure 1. Klamath River Basin

Source: Bureau of Reclamation, adapted by CRS.
Background
Water supplies from both the federal Klamath Project and other off-project sources of water support
irrigated agriculture, which is a driver of economic activity in the Klamath Basin. Other major users of
Klamath Project water include six national wildlife refuges that sustain migratory bird habitat and several
Native American tribes that rely on basin fish species. Currently, two species of upper basin fish (Lost
River and shortnose sucker) are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA; P.L. 93-
205), and one species of lower basin fish (coho salmon) is listed as threatened under the ESA. The basin
also contains seven dams on the Klamath River and its tributaries, built between 1918 and 1962.
PacifiCorp, a regulated utility, owns six of these dams (known as the Klamath Hydroelectric Project). The

link to page 4 Congressional Research Service
3
original Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) license to operate these dams expired in 2006;
FERC has since extended operations in multiple temporary annual licenses.
The Klamath Project has a history of conflicts associated with water deliveries. In 2001, Reclamation, at
the direction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS), significantly curtailed water deliveries to the Klamath Project to provide more water for
endangered fish. Irrigators protested these actions. In 2002, irrigators received significantly more water
than in the previous year, but thousands of Chinook salmon died on the lower part of the Klamath River,
largely due to poor water conditions and fish health in that part of the basin.
In response to earlier conflicts, the federal government facilitated formal negotiations in the basin
between 2006 and 2010. The resulting agreements—the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA)
and the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA)—aimed to resolve long-standing issues in
the basin. The KBRA proposed actions to restore Klamath fisheries and support tribes, and it provided
assurances for water deliveries to wildlife refuges and project irrigators. The KHSA outlined a process to
remove four of PacifiCorp’s dams on the Klamath River. These agreements were proposed but not
enacted in prior Congresses. The process for removing the four PacifiCorp dams has gone forward, with
the federal government no longer directly involved in dam removal. At the same time, Reclamation
continues to operate the Klamath Project under recent biological opinions (BiOps) under the ESA for
listed species.
Previously, Congress has provided additional appropriations in response to issues in the basin, including
the following:
 $20 million in the 2001 farm bill (P.L. 107-20) and $50 million in the 2002 farm bill (P.L.
107-171), for water conservation and drought relief efforts in the basin
 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration funds for fishery disaster
determinations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
in 2007 ($60 million), 2016 ($3.86 million), 2016-2017 ($8.96 million), and 2018 ($2.23
million)
 $17.57 million to Reclamation and other agencies in 2008-2011 for the Klamath Dam
Removal Determination studies
 $62 million to Reclamation in 2001-2015 for the Klamath Water Bank and successor
agreements
 $26 million to Reclamation from 2016-2020 for BiOp reconsultation and funding for
other Klamath drought relief and water conservation efforts
Recent Drought and Federal Response
Recently, the Klamath Basin has faced some of its driest years in decades. Inflows in 2021 were at
historically low levels, and Reclamation allocated only 33,000 acre-feet for irrigators (Figure 2). In May
2021, Reclamation announced the closure of the Klamath Project “A” canal, a major source of project
releases. The agency also said it would not implement Klamath River surface flushing flows for salmon
(an action it normally conducts pursuant to the ESA) during the current water year. Per terms in the
BiOps, Reclamation created a Temporary Operations Plan (TOP) to manage water to address competing
needs.

link to page 5
Congressional Research Service
4
Figure 2. Klamath Project Water Allocations, 2001-2021

Source: CRS, based on Bureau of Reclamation data.
Notes: Does not reflect supply for areas served exclusively by Clear Lake and Gerber Reservoirs. The 2001 allocation
does not reflect mid-season releases or water made available through emergency groundwater wells.
In response to the aforementioned 2021 drought conditions, the federal government provided additional
aid in the basin, including the following:
 $15 million in Reclamation funding for the Klamath Drought Response Agency (DRA),
which was announced in April 2021, plus $3 million in trial technical assistance for
ecosystem activities
 $15 million for a U.S. Department of Agriculture block grant under the CARES Act (P.L.
116-136) to fund DRA producer payments to reduce irrigation demand.
 $10 million for Reclamation drought response in the FY2022 continuing resolution (P.L.
117-43)
 $162 million for ecosystem restoration on FWS-leased lands in the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58)
Conditions in the basin are again below average in 2022 (Figure 3). Reclamation’s Klamath
Project allocations are expected in April 2022 and may lead to stakeholder calls for additional
federal aid and other actions.

Congressional Research Service
5
Figure 3. Klamath River Basin: 2022 Hydrology in Context
(2022 conditions at Klamath Falls, OR, as of February 7, 2022)

Source: Bureau of Reclamation, Klamath River Basin Hydrologic Outlook, February 8, 2022, at https://www.usbr.gov/mp/
kbao/docs/2022-02-08-kb-hydrologic-outlook.pdf.

Author Information

Charles V. Stern
Pervaze A. Sheikh
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff
to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of
Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of
information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role.
CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United
States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However,
as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the
permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

Congressional Research Service
6

IN11689 · VERSION 3 · UPDATED