Groundwater irrigators and surface water irrigators have completed a deal that saves 330,000 acres of Idaho farmland from being dried up and averts economic catastrophe in the state.
A mitigation agreement for 2024, brokered by Governor Brad Little and Lt. Governor Scott Bedke, has now been signed by all parties and has been submitted to the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR for approval. When the deal is approved, IDWR will lift the curtailment for all nine ground water districts whose patrons irrigate with groundwater from the ESPA.
“This is a huge relief to our members, who have had their livelihoods threatened over the past month,” said TJ Budge, attorney for Idaho Ground Water Appropriators. “We want to thank Governor Little, Lt. Governor Bedke, Senator Van Burtenshaw and, especially, all of our groundwater district members for their sincere and significant efforts to get a deal done before it was too late.”
Though this agreement allows farmers to continue growing crops in 2024, it does not fix the underlying issues with the way Idaho is managing the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer (ESPA). Groundwater districts are putting considerable trust in the state to fulfill promises that a more pragmatic and effective management plan will be implemented before the next growing season.
