A Water Management Board is being established in the Walla Walla Watershed planning area, which is a subsection of Water Resource Inventory Area 32, under authority of Second Substitute House Bill 1580 for Pilot Local Water Management. The nine member Water Management Board will be established as the Walla Walla Watershed Management Partnership. Three Board member positions are vacant, to be appointed in 2009 for a two-year term: one member must be a water rights holder; one member must represent local environmental interests; and one member must be a citizen at large.
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This site has been redesigned to help with the implementation of 2SHB 1580 which enables a pilot local water managment program in one qualified jurisdictions (WRIA 32 - Walla Walla). This bill passed the Legislature on April 18, 2009, and was signed by Governor Gregoire on April 23, 2009. The Walla Walla Watershed Management Partnership is in the process of seeking authority to operate under 2SHB 1580, with plans to achieve that status shortly after the bill becomes law on July 26, 2009. Efforts leading up to the formation of the Partnership were made up of community members including landowners, local governments, conservation groups, tribes, state and federal agencies, and many other entities working to develop local solutions to regional water issues. Development of this Partnership with the authority to develop a local water management program under 2SHB 1580 will involve a number of transitions within the Walla Walla Basin, this website is dedicated to providing information on that transition, and the emerging Partnership.
We continue to maintain information previously found on www.wallawallawatershed.org but it has been reorganized and restructured, please use the search function in the upper right portion of the page if you are not able to find something you are looking for, or visit the old site maintained until 6.30.09.
This Transition to the creation of a Water Management Board, to be named the "Walla Walla Watershed Management Partnership" requires a number of steps. In general they are:
| Approval of legislation |
April 2009 |
| Organize Initiating Entities |
April-June 2009 |
| Development of By-laws, selection of members |
May-June 2009 |
| Legislation becomes Law |
July 2009 |
| Petition to create a Water Management Board |
July 2009 |
| Approval of Petition |
Summer 2009 |
| Partnership begins to operate |
Summer 2009 |
The Walla Walla community, is establishing the "Walla Walla Watershed Management Partnership" to meet the demands of local watershed management. The Partnership will integrate local water and watershed management with state oversight, providing a primary governance structure for improved water management and ensuring that local and statewide interests are protected. The Partnership will feature three core groups:
- The Walla Walla Partnership Board: The Board, with nine members, will be the primary leadership, oversight and decision-making body for the Partnership.
- Policy Advisory Group: The Advisory Group will advise and assist the Partnership Board carry out its responsibilities.
- Water Resources Panel: The Panel will be composed of technical experts from a range of disciplines and perspectives to ensure that decisions are grounded in sound science and that knowledge is shared among people active in the Basin.
Ecology will have representatives on the Policy Advisory Group and Water Resources Panel. Ecology will provide shared oversight of water management activities and will approve water management plans jointly with the Partnership.
Please visit our FAQ page with further questions Alternatively you may contact Staff |
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Under grant from the Department of Ecology, and in coordination with funding from the Snake River Salmon Recovery Board, a report on Watershed Plan implementation progress between 2005 and 2009 was completed in June 2009.
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Collection of information on the process, development, and formation of the Walla Walla Watershed Management Partnership.
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Pre-proposal Due April 30th
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