Estimating the value of irrigation water transferred to instream flow : A case study of Umatilla County, Oregon

• Main Author: Ugrinska, Monika P.
• Other Authors: Jaeger, William K., Gamroth, Michael, Adams, Richard, Agriculture and Resource Economics, Oregon State University. Graduate School
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English; unknown
• Published: Oregon State University
• Subjects: Water-supply > Oregon > Milton-Freewater; Irrigation water > Economic aspects > Oregon > Milton-Freewater; Hudson Bay
• Online Access: https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/t722hc94x

Agricultural water supplies are becoming increasingly uncertain in the western United States due to elevated demands from competing water users, environmental restrictions on surface water withdrawals as a result of the establishment of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, and potential climatic changes. Since many rural communities in the West are economically dependent on irrigated agriculture, reduced water supplies may significantly impact the agricultural sector. The objectives of this study were to: 1) estimate the impacts of reduced surface water supplies and elevated instream flow requirements on commercial agriculture in the Milton-Freewater area of northeastern Oregon and 2) estimate the value of irrigation water and the cost to transfer water from commercial agriculture operations to instream use assuming a water market existed (i.e. voluntary transfers to a hypothetical buyer). Two models written in the General Algebraic Modeling System (GAMS) were developed to estimate economic impacts. Each model represented one irrigation district in the area with its characteristics in terms of irrigated acreage, crops grown, irrigation practices, and water usage. The models were then modified to reflect changes in surface water supplies, increased minimum stream flow requirements, and the existence of a water market, which allocates water to non-agricultural uses. Results indicate that with reduced surface water supplies (10% reduction in river levels) and higher stream flow requirements (additional 5 cfs left instream), both districts (Walla Walla River Irrigation District and Hudson Bay District Improvement Company) experience reductions in net revenues ranging from 0.9% to 4.2 % in Walla Walla and between 11% and 15% in Hudson Bay. Moreover, the reduction in irrigated acreage led to negative impacts on labor income with more significance in the senior right holder district (declines vary between 0.7% to 4.1% in Walla Walla and from 0.7% to 2.5% in Hudson Bay). In the presence of a water market, while net ...