Community Conversation on WATER

The evening's introductions by Chris Gannon of Crooked River Watershed Council.
Thank you to our Featured Guests for sharing their thoughts on this topic of Water:
Thursday July 21, 2022 at 5:30PM 
​Our Crook County region is the hardest hit in Oregon by drought. What can we do to adapt systems, management and our own water consumption around the home and yard.
In this July Community Conversation you'll learn what's happening around water within the watershed and what are local organizations and our neighbors doing about it.
Recent WATER articles on the topic from Crook County:
Featured Guests
  • Oregon Irrigation District, Bruce Scanlon - Learn about current water year implications and water projects underway.
  • Oregon Water Resource Department, Kyle Gorman -
    Learn about future forecasts, new gauging stations, new policies and upcoming work in the watershed.
  • Deschutes River Conservancy, Natasha Bellis

Thank you to our Invited Guests for being available to answer community questions! 
  • Crook County Watershed Council. How watershed restoration can create resiliency. Fish screens.
  • City of Prineville. Management of water and sewer, storm water and other public works affecting citizens.
  • USGS/COCC. Learn about the springs monitoring and study happening in the Ochoco Mountains.
  • On-farm irrigation equipment modernization.
  • Crook County. Learn how Juniper removal and management can affect water availability.
  • Oregon DEQ. TMDL Basin Coordinator will answer questions on water quality in the basin. 
  • OSU-COAREC. Soils and water retention in agriculture.
  • Wintercreek Nursery. Regrettably, unable to attend.
  • Bureau of Reclamations' WaterSMART program to address water supply and modernizing infrastructure.
  • Beaver Works Oregon. How healthy beavers populations can keep water longer on the landscape.
  • NRCS. Soil health, small farms and organics.
  • Beaver Dam Analogues (BDA's) on the landscape.
  • Crooked River Wetlands Complex.
  • Groundwater.
  • The Ochoco Preserve.

Thanks to all who submitted these questions for the night's forum!

  • How is the priority for water use determined. Is it determined by percentage or previous agreements? There is difficulty w perception.
  • How do we maintain a wetlands without adequate water?
  • How does flood irrigation compare to other forms of irrigation in regard to efficiency of water use?
  • Are the server buildings using crooked River water for heating and cooling purposes?
  • Hopefully they will address how much water Facebook and Apple pull from the aquifer supplying Prineville and then sent back down to go through the wetland park on O'Neil hwy on the west side of town and to flow out crooked river.
  • Where does the water for our underground aquifers come from ?
  • With so many people relying on private water wells for everyday existence, what is the long-term health of, outlook for, our groundwater here in Crook County?
  • A comment: Please prioritize the health of the Crooked River's fish and do not reduce the water flow from the Prineville dam. Thank you! 
Thank you to our WATER ​event Sponsors