As demand for water supplies increase, water utilities often consider taking increasing amounts of water from natural streams. However, the public and natural resource agencies are becoming more attuned to the value of water when left in the stream. Potential conflicts between instream flow needs and proposals to remove water from streams has become a major issue facing water utilities that are trying to acquire water withdrawal permits. Utilities tend not to be very knowledgeable of how this instream flow issue has moved up the environmental agenda in the last 15 or so years and, thus, they often are not well equipped to deal with the technical needs or institutional requirements associated with the issue. Also, the high cost of conducting studies and negotiating with agencies if often met with objection. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to update the current status of the instream flow issue in general and to offer some suggestions on how to best approach the issue in a reasonable and prudent manner, with the primary focus being on the application of instream flow methodologies. The first step when addressing the need for an instream flow study is to know at what planning level the project is in. Although the progression of any project is continuous, it is helpful to break the effort into several levels, such as reconnaissance (identify potential instream flow concerns), feasibility (determine if the proposed project is likely to be compatible with existing instream resource uses), and operational (quantify impacts, develop mitigation measures, and negotiate operational strategies with the permitting agencies). The author then discusses the importance of negotiation of minimum flow levels with fisheries agencies and some tactics to successfully accomplish a win-win situation. The author then concludes with several recommendations regarding instream flow studies.
| ISBN(s) : | 0898678315 |
| Number of Pages : | 9 |
| Published : | 01/01/1995 |
