Washington Dept. of Ecology and Chelan County plan EIS for Icicle Creek Water Resource Strategy

As the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) and Chelan County prepare for a programmatic environmental impact statement (EIS) for the recently advanced Icicle Creek Water Resource Strategy, the department is accepting public input on the EIS’s scope.

The strategy is the culmination of negotiations and collaborations with the Icicle Creek Work Group and local, tribal, state and federal agencies as well as environmental and agricultural stakeholders. The strategy considers management projects that would bolster streamflows and promote efficient water use to boost water availability during late summer and early fall, when flows are typically low and in demand from both irrigators and fish.

“Icicle Creek needs more reliable water flows for fish recovery work to be successful, especially in years of drought,” Washington Fish and Wildlife Regional Director Jim Brown, who also serves as the work group’s steering committee chair, said. “An important goal of the Icicle Strategy is to develop water projects that will meet multiple community values and achieve a real win for fish, and for people.”

The EIS, undertaken in cooperation by Ecology and Chelan County, will follow the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), but the governmental entities are accepting input on the scope of potential impacts to be considered. Interested parties can submit comments until May 11.