A farm in southeastern Washington has been fined $304,000 by the Washington state Department of Ecology for irrigating 250 acres without rights to the water.
Frank Tiegs LLC in Franklin County has 30 days to appeal the decision to the Washington state Pollution Control Hearings Board, The Tri-City Herald reported. The Department of Ecology said the illegal water use threatened stream flows on the Columbia and Snake rivers, which are critical rivers for salmon and steelhead. According to the penalty notice, The farm built pipelines and two 125-acre irrigation pivot systems to water previously unfarmed land out of the McNary Pool of the Snake River in the irrigation season of 2021.
The department asked the landowner in August about the water rights and the farm said it was irrigating the acreage and that it was a mistake. But a check Sept. 20 showed some of the proposed irrigation practices were not being implemented as reported, according to the penalty notice.
The penalty amount is for $2,000 per day for 152 days of illegal irrigation. (Seattle Times)
