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               ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1110

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State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

By House Committee on Agriculture & Ecology (originally sponsored by Representatives Chandler, Mastin, McMorris, Koster, Delvin, Mulliken, Schoesler and Honeyford)

Read first time 02/12/97.

Altering a moratorium on new appropriations of Columbia river waters.  

    AN ACT Relating to water resources; and adding a new section to chapter 90.03 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 90.03 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) No action taken by the department of ecology to withdraw the unappropriated water of the main stem of the Columbia river from further appropriation may apply to an application filed with the department before September 1993 that is:

    (a) For the use of less than seven hundred gallons of ground water per minute or for the use of less than one and six‑tenths cubic feet per second of surface water;

    (b) For the use of seven hundred gallons or more of ground water per minute if the applicant chooses to amend the application to apply to the use of less than seven hundred gallons of ground water per minute; or

    (c) For the use of one and six‑tenths cubic feet per second or more of surface water if the applicant chooses to amend the application to apply to the use of less than one and six‑tenths cubic feet per second of surface water.

    (2) This section applies to the surface water of the main stem of the Columbia river upstream of the confluence of the Columbia river and the Snake river.  This section also applies to any ground water that, based upon its being hydraulically continuous with the surface water of the main stem of the Columbia river upstream of its confluence with the Snake river, is governed by an action of the department of ecology withdrawing the unappropriated water of the main stem of the Columbia river from further appropriation.

    (3) If an applicant chooses to amend an application filed before September 1993 as described in subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) of this section, the original application shall be divided into two applications, each carrying the application date and subsequent priority date of the original application.  One of the applications shall be for the amount of water chosen under subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) of this section and the other shall be for the amount of water listed in the original application less the amount chosen under subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) of this section.

    (4) The legislature finds that WAC 173-563-015 as it exists on the effective date of this section is in conflict with this section and is void to the extent of the conflict.  The department shall notify each person who filed an application on or after December 20, 1991, and before September 1993 for ground or surface water described in subsection (2) of this section regarding the provisions of this section.  The notice shall include a copy of this section.

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