The Oregon Water Trust is an environmental organization based in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

. Its mission is to restore surface water flows for healthier streams in Oregon by using cooperative, free-market

Free market

A free market is a competitive market where prices are determined by supply and demand. However, the term is also commonly used for markets in which economic intervention and regulation by the state is limited to tax collection, and enforcement of private ownership and contracts...

 solutions. OWT was founded in 1993 by a group with diverse water interests who sought to utilize the "tools of the land trust movement...and apply the same approach to the acquisition of water". "With the success of OWT, water trusts have been created in Montana, Colorado, and Washington" with others emerging across the Western United States. Utilizing a transactional approach, the group focuses on streams where small amounts of water provide significant ecological benefits. The result is healthier streams for fish, wildlife, and people.

Overview

Oregon Water Trust targets efforts in those watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

s that have historically supported significant fisheries

Fishery

Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...

. Within each watershed, Oregon Water Trust identifies priority streams for which streamflow

Streamflow

Streamflow, or channel runoff, is the flow of water in streams, rivers, and other channels, and is a major element of the water cycle. It is one component of the runoff of water from the land to waterbodies, the other component being surface runoff...

 is a limiting factor for fish habitat and water quality

Water quality

Water quality is the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water. It is a measure of the condition of water relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which...

 and there is potential for acquiring water right

Water right

Water right in water law refers to the right of a user to use water from a water source, e.g., a river, stream, pond or source of groundwater. In areas with plentiful water and few users, such systems are generally not complicated or contentious...

s to convert to instream use

Instream use

Instream use refers to water use taking place within a stream channel. Examples are hydroelectric power generation, navigation, fish propagation and use, and recreational activities...

 to enhance flows. Oregon Water Trust concentrates acquisition efforts on small- to medium-sized tributaries

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 that provide spawning

Spawn (biology)

Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...

 and rearing for salmonids

Salmonidae

Salmonidae is a family of ray-finned fish, the only living family currently placed in the order Salmoniformes. It includes salmon, trout, chars, freshwater whitefishes and graylings...

. In these systems, small amounts of water can provide significant ecological benefits.

Oregon Water Trust uses ecological

Ecology

Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...

, hydrologic

Hydrology

Hydrology is the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water on Earth and other planets, including the hydrologic cycle, water resources and environmental watershed sustainability...

 and water rights data to identify priority streams and evaluate potential water right acquisitions. Analysis of streamflows and habitat conditions includes:

• Delineating fish use and distribution for each segment;
• Documenting the current and historical ecological value of the waterway for fish;
• Evaluating current habitat and water quality conditions;
• Describing the current water availability situation;
• Summarizing the relationship of the water right to other water rights in the stream segment; and
• Evaluating the potential benefits of acquired water on fish habitat and water quality.

Oregon Water Trust compiles data on species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 present, their habitat needs and endangered species listing status

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

; instream conditions (e.g., flow alteration, temperature, water quality); and relation of instream conditions to riparian

Riparian zone

A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the fifteen terrestrial biomes of the earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks are called riparian vegetation, characterized by...

, upslope and watershed conditions and activities.

Approach

Oregon Water Trust's market-based

Market economy

A market economy is an economy in which the prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system. This is often contrasted with a state-directed or planned economy. Market economies can range from hypothetically pure laissez-faire variants to an assortment of real-world mixed...

 approach provides water right holders in Oregon with a variety of incentives to convert their consumptive water rights to instream water rights. These include: income from marginally productive areas, replacement feed for lost production, funding for irrigation

Irrigation

Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...

 efficiency projects, a possible tax break

Tax break

Tax break is a slang term referring to any item which reduces tax, including any tax exemption, tax deduction, or tax credit. Tax break is also a pejorative term used in the United States to refer to purportedly favorable tax treatment of any class of persons, as in "individuals get a tax break...

 for permanent donations of water rights, and flexibility in managing water rights.

Partners

Oregon Water Trust works with local and community groups, agency staff and others interested in water rights issues in order to add to, and not duplicate, the efforts of others. Whenever possible, Oregon Water Trust strives to work with communities to create cooperative solutions that benefit all parties.

Oregon Water Trust's board of directors represents agricultural, environmental, legal and tribal

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 perspectives. This diverse board membership allows the organization to openly and effectively address the concerns of rural Oregonians regarding their livelihoods and the conservation of aquatic resources.

Project history

It has been over 13 years since Oregon Water Trust completed their first paid lease with a rancher on Buck Hollow Creek in the Deschutes Basin. Since then Oregon Water Trust has increased their effectiveness dramatically. In 1994, the Oregon Water Trust water portfolio amounted to two leases totaling 1.4 cubic foot (0.0396435858 m³) per second (40 L/s). Today, their portfolio has grown to 160 ft³/s (4,500 L³/s) protected for instream use in 86 streams, representing in aggregate the equivalent to the flow of the Applegate River in August. Over the year, this constitutes 52896 acre.ft of water.

The Oregon Water Trust has implemented successful projects in basins which include the Deschutes, John Day

John Day River

The John Day River is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northeastern Oregon in the United States. Undammed along its entire length, the river is the third longest free-flowing river in the conterminous United States. There is extensive use of its waters for irrigation. Its...

, Willamette

Willamette River

The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...

, and Rogue

Rogue River (Oregon)

The Rogue River in southwestern Oregon in the United States flows about in a generally westward direction from the Cascade Range to the Pacific Ocean. Known for its salmon runs, whitewater rafting, and rugged scenery, it was one of the original eight rivers named in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act...

rivers.