(1) The Water Resources Commission may by rule establish a system of credits that may be used to offset the potential interference with hydraulically connected surface waters caused by ground water withdrawals within the Deschutes River Basin to account for projects performed in the basin that make water available for mitigation.
(2) A person proposing a project that makes water available for mitigation may apply to the Water Resources Department for approval of the project and a preliminary finding as to the amount of mitigation credits available, based on the amount of water made available by the project. Projects approved by the department shall comply with all other applicable provisions of law, including relevant portions of ORS 390.835, and may not result in injury to existing water rights.
(3)(a) The amount of mitigation credits awarded for a completed project, or any completed phase of the project, shall be equal to the amount of water made available by the project as determined and approved by the department.
(b) A final award of mitigation credits by the department shall be made upon completion of the approved project by the applicant and verification by the department that the project is complete. The department may provide for a partial award of mitigation credits to correspond with completion of approved phases of project implementation.
(c) Mitigation credits shall remain valid until exercised by the holder.
(4) The commission may by rule provide for the recognition or establishment of mitigation banks to facilitate transactions among the holders of mitigation credits and persons who desire to acquire mitigation credits. The mitigation credits may be assigned by the person creating the project to another person or a mitigation bank.
(5) The Water Resources Department shall prepare an annual report on the implementation and management of the system of mitigation credits established by subsections (1) to (4) of this section. [2001 c.659 §§2,3]
(Deschutes Basin Ground Water Study Area)
Note: Sections 1 to 5, chapter 669, Oregon Laws 2005, provide:
Sec. 1. Section 2 of this 2005 Act is added to and made a part of ORS 537.505 to 537.795. [2005 c.669 §1]
Sec. 2. The Legislative Assembly declares that rules adopted by the Water Resources Commission for the Deschutes basin ground water study area and certified effective by the Secretary of State on September 27, 2002, satisfy the requirements relating to mitigation under ORS 390.805 to 390.925, 537.332 to 537.360 and 537.505 to 537.795. [2005 c.669 §2]
Sec. 3. (1) The Water Resources Department shall report to the Seventy-fifth Legislative Assembly, no later than January 31, 2009, on the implementation and operation of the Deschutes River Basin ground water mitigation and mitigation bank programs. The report may include information on the progress on restoring streamflows in the Deschutes River Basin to a point sufficient to support anadromous fish and information on any statutory changes necessary to accomplish the needed streamflow restoration. In formulating the report, the department shall consult with Deschutes River Basin water users and organizations with an interest in water use in the basin. The department shall work with basin water users and organizations with an interest in water use in the basin to seek funding for a facilitated process to develop the report required by this section and to evaluate the ground water mitigation and mitigation bank programs.
(2) The report prepared pursuant to this section shall include a summary of:
(a) The cumulative rate of water appropriated under all ground water permits approved in the Deschutes River Basin after the effective date of this 2005 Act [July 29, 2005];
(b) The volume of water, in acre-feet, provided for mitigation; and
(c) The measured streamflow of the Deschutes River and its major tributaries. [2005 c.669 §3]
Sec. 4. Section 2 of this 2005 Act applies to all ground water permits containing a ground water mitigation requirement, all final orders approving water right applications containing a ground water mitigation requirement, all mitigation credits, all ground water mitigation projects and all mitigation banks issued or approved in the Deschutes River Basin by the Water Resources Department or the Water Resources Commission before, on or after the effective date of this 2005 Act [July 29, 2005]. [2005 c.669 §4]
Sec. 5. (1) The Water Resources Commission shall repeal the rules referred to in section 2 of this 2005 Act on January 2, 2014.
(2) Ground water permits and mitigation projects approved before the repeal remain valid and effective. [2005 c.669 §5]
(Water Well Constructors)
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