Nooksack River basin rule amendment

In May 2020, we amended the existing instream flow rule for the Nooksack River basin, or Water Resource Inventory Area (WRIA) 1, in order to meet the requirements of the Streamflow Restoration law. The rule amendments:

Establish domestic permit-exempt groundwater withdrawal limits for new users.
Add flexibility for projects that retime high flows for instream resource benefits.
Make minor technical corrections to clarify existing language and conform it to the updated language.

The rule amendment takes effect on June 27, 2020. The amended rule language, supporting documentation, and other information is available on our WRIA 1 rulemaking webpage.

This action is part of the 2018 Streamflow Restoration law, which requires fifteen watersheds to develop locally-approved watershed plans. Despite great effort, the local WRIA 1 planning group was not able to meet their Feb. 1, 2019 deadline. As a result, Ecology was obligated by the law to adopt a rule by Aug. 1, 2020.

For more information on the law, visit our Streamflow restoration webpage.

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Domestic Withdrawal Limits

The updated rule sets withdrawal limits for new homes in WRIA 1 using new permit-exempt wells for indoor and outdoor domestic water use. The withdrawal limits apply to building permit applicants who:

Receive a building permit for a new home in the Nooksack River basin on or after June 27, 2020, AND
Use a permit-exempt well drilled on or after June 27, 2020 for their domestic supply for the new home.

The new withdrawal limits do not apply to:

Users outside of the Nooksack River basin (WRIA 1).
Existing homeowners.
Those with a building permit approved before June 27, 2020.
Those using a well drilled before June 27, 2020.

New homes in WRIA 1 using a new permit-exempt well for their indoor domestic water use and outdoor domestic water use have the following limits:

	Indoor Domestic	Outdoor Domestic
Single home	500 gallons per day	1/12 acre (3,630 square feet)
Group domestic system	500 gallons per day per connection (Maximum of 3,000 gpd for entire group)	1/12 acre per connection (maximum of 1/2 acre total across the entire group)
Drought	No change	Same limits but for subsistence gardening only

Additional information on the withdrawal limits is avalable at WAC 173-501-065.

If a drought emergency order is issued, withdrawals from new permit-exempt domestic wells may be curtailed, but still allow:

Indoor domestic water use, AND
Withdrawals to maintain up to one-twelfth acre for each connection for noncommercial subsistence gardening purposes.

During these times, domestic outdoor irrigation for uses such as (non-commercial) lawn irrigation is not allowed.

The amended section of WAC 173-501-065(1) includes the following definitions:

(b) “Indoor domestic water use” means potable water to satisfy the domestic needs of a household, including water used for drinking, bathing, sanitary purposes, cooking, laundering, and other incidental uses.

(d) “Subsistence gardening” means food cultivation for personal use by residents of the home.

Fees

The updated rule continues the $500 fee established in the 2018 law for new building permits associated with new household permit-exempt wells.

Adding flexibility

The amended rule provides flexibility for projects that retime seasonal high flows, improving streamflow during crucial periods to benefit instream resources.

The amended rule provides flexibility for projects that retime seasonal high flows, improving streamflow during crucial periods to benefit instream resources. Under the amendment (see WAC 173-501-070(4)), new interruptible uses may be approved from streams that are closed to new withdrawals under WAC 173-501-040 if we determine through the agency’s water right appropriation procedure under Chapter 90.03 RCW that the proposed use is consistent with:

(a) the intent of Chapter 90.94 RCW to offset potential impacts to instream flows associated with permit-exempt domestic water use; or

(b) applicable laws and restores and enhances streamflows.

The intent of this added language is to provide a narrow exemption that benefits streamflows and aquatic species. Under this exemption, a new water right can potentially be approved during the closure period, subject to an established instream flow or low flow limitation, and subject to conditions necessary to protect high flow functions, provided the proposed water use enhances and restores streamflows.

Minor technical updates

The amendment made minor updates to clarify existing language and conformed it to the updated language.

Supporting documents and analysis

As part of the required rulemaking process we published a Final Rule Supporting Document that includes:

The consumptive use estimated for new domestic permit-exempt wells in the WRIA for the 20 year planning horizon (2018-2038)
Projects and actions to offset potential impacts to instream flows associated with the new domestic permit-exempt domestic water use (2018-2038)
Adaptive management planning provision
An evaluation for Net Ecological Benefit (NEB)

Additionally, as part of the rule making process we published:

Concise explanatory statement (responding to comments)
Implementation plan
SEPA documentation
Final regulatory analysis (economic analysis).

For more information on the law, visit our Streamflow Restoration webpage.

Projects & actions

As required under the Streamflow Restoration law, we identified projects and actions that offset the domestic water use of new homes and achieved net ecological benefit (NEB) in the Nooksack River basin. As of May 2020, eight of the projects were funded or partially funded, and several more are seeking funding through our Streamflow Restoration competitive grant program.

Adaptive management

To address uncertainties, we developed an adaptive management approach; information on this is available in the Final Rule Supporting Document. Adaptive management is an iterative and systematic decision-making process and framework that aims to reduce uncertainty over time and help meet performance goals by learning from the progress and outcomes of projects and actions.

Contact information

Kasey Cykler
Northwest Region Water Resources Section Manager
kasey.cykler@ecy.wa.gov
360-603-1037