Modeling program on wells done by OWRD / Oregon Water Resource Department is majorly flawed.

from Klamath County Commissioner Tom Mallams 5/17/15

Here is the ex summary and power point on the city's well study that shows the modeling program on wells done by OWRD / Oregon Water Resource Department is majorly flawed.

Geosyntec consultants City of Klamath Falls review of OWRD model for Frement and Wocus wells, and the Congor well field 5/4/15
Geosyntec Executive Summary 4/6/2015. "OWRD requested shutoff of two city wells...The OWRD model is flawed for municipal use for several reasons..."

This is the same model that "claims" all the upper basin wells are also connected to surface water.

Interesting note:  At the March 23rd Senate Hearing in Salem, on Senate Bill 206 & 264, OWRD and Richard Whitman, Policy Director for Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber’s Natural Resources Office, admitted under questioning from Senator Doug Whitsett that they "hoped" their accuracy rate on this modeling program could be 50%.  That accuracy rate might as well be achieved by flipping a coin.

And they are trying to shut wells off with this 50% success/failure rate, which will cost farmers, ranchers, city, JeldWen, Running Y, Harbor Links and others into the $millions if everyone surrenders and turns their wells off.
At this point, it looks like few if any are going to shut their wells off.

Last year OWRD did shut down 2 of the cities wells plus Jeld Wen, part of Running Y, Harbor Links golf course and some upper basin irrigation wells. There was a total of 14 wells that they regulated off. Jeld Wen had to buy city water to run their mill for about a month, the city was allowed to pump a reduced amount and the irrigators as far as I know refused to shut their wells off.

The complete well analysis done by Geosyntec will be available in the near future.

Tom Mallams, Klamath County Commissioner
 

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