3-15 IAN Idaho Water

 What is Gov. Otter’s take on the future of water in Idaho?

 A recent press release from the US cattlemen’s beef Association had this headline… “US House Passes Legislation to End “Man-Made Drought” in California”. I asked Gov. Otter about water in Idaho. “Is water and issue in Idaho? Water is always an issue David, we are making some great strides. In April of 07 I called a water summit over in Burley. We had all of the stake holders. There is not an Idahoan who isn’t a stakeholder in water needs, water use, and our water future. With that summit we did have the leaders of those stakeholders. We set ourselves on a program to recharge the aquifer, to make right some of the over apportionment that we had, especially from the upper Snake, and as you will recall we did not go into conjunctive management, that is managing the aquifer and the river as though they were one asset. We have made a lot of strides. Some of the things that we have done in the middle Snake in acquiring water rights, in acquiring the pristine springs, we have been able to remedy some of that over appropriation done in years past.