Vineyard pumping targeted in fish kill
Frank Robertson
The Healdsburg Tribune
04/16/2009
Winegrowers using water from the Russian River and its tributaries to protect vineyards from frost are the focus of an ongoing investigation into fish kills reported last spring and again this year when sudden drops in water levels were reported near Healdsburg.
River flows may drop as much as 50 to 80 cubic feet per second on days when spring frost warnings cause farmers to pump water for frost protection, according to the Sonoma County Water Agency.
Officials say the sudden drops have been blamed for stranding and killing juvenile salmon that are listed as a species endangered with extinction under the federal Endangered Species Act.
Fish kills were reported in Felta Creek near Healdsburg and along the Russian River in Mendocino County during frosty weather last spring and again two weeks ago according to state water officials who held a workshop last week to discuss a possible ban this year on using river and stream diversions for frost protection.
Water officials haven’t identified specific growers and say the “draw-downs” in river and creek levels are likely the result of multiple growers trying to protect crops.
“It will be even more of a challenge this year” to protect crops without killing fish, said a Water Agency engineer at a water supply workshop this week. Trying to determine exactly who’s diverting water and how much “would be very difficult process,” said Water Agency engineer Don Seymour.
“These issues usually happen when you have multiple diverters,” said Water Agency spokesman Brad Sherwood. “That’s when you see water levels drop in the tributaries.”
Water quality protection agencies as well as local winegrowers and environmentalists last summer formed a Russian River Frost Task Force to look at long-term alternatives such as reservoirs and wind machines as well as having the Water Agency release more water from Lake Mendocino to compensate for downstream frost water demand.
Water officials at last week’s frost protection workshop admitted they don’t know how many vineyards rely on surface water to irrigate for frost protection or whether the growers are operating legally.
But they do know that diverting river and creek water in spring occurs just when newborn salmon fry are taking refuge in shallow margins of streams where they are “highly susceptible to stranding,” said a fisheries biology report presented last week to the state Water Resources Control Board.
This year flows from Lake Mendocino have been increased in anticipation of “drawdown events downstream,” said the biologists’ report, even though the low water level in Lake Mendocino is a key reason why an emergency order was issued last week telling commercial and domestic customer to cut their water usage.
Failure to take action on frost irrigation practices “will likely result in additional fish kills and violations” of the Endangered Species Act, said the biologists’ report that recommends a ban on frost diversions this year while alternative methods are considered.
Wine industry representatives last week defended their frost protection methods and said the state Water Resources Control Board has failed to prove that frost diversions resulted in fish kills.
Without water for frost protection “an entire crop could be destroyed in a single night,” said Robert Wagner, of Wagner & Bonsignore, consulting engineers with numerous Russian River winegrower clients.
Crop losses would run into the millions of dollars, said Wagner in a letter urging the workshop organizers to hold off on any action until a more thorough investigation has been completed.
Don McEnhill of the Russian Riverkeeper project that watchdogs River environmental issues said the state’s inaction will likely worsen the situation for the Russian River’s endangered native fish population.
