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Local advisory group urges public engagement as DEQ TMDL work continues
Summary
Powder-Brownlee watershed residents and the Baker County Livestock Association urged more public participation in state TMDL planning, highlighting concerns about data attribution to agriculture and the high cost of proposed DNA testing.
Curtis Martin, a Baker County resident and member of the Powder–Brownlee Ag Water Quality Local Advisory Committee, told commissioners on Feb. 26 that local stakeholders want more public participation in the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality(DEQ) TMDL implementation process for the Powder–Brownlee and Burnt River watersheds.
"We just need a lot of public participation," Martin said, urging broader turnout from anyone who uses the basin’s water, not only farmers and ranchers. He and other committee members contend the DEQ analysis attributed 80–90% of pollutant load to agriculture without locally specific source data. The advisory group favors more collaborative data collection through the Oregon Department of Agriculture and uniform monitoring plans across agencies.
Martin and others noted the technical scope of the monitoring: the county requested DNA-based source tracking, temperature and turbidity monitoring as part of a five-year plan. That DNA testing is costly; the transcript records a reference to about $125 per sample. County staff said all agencies with responsibilities are drafting five-year monitoring plans and that monitoring results will be compiled and reported to DEQ.
Why it matters: TMDL designation and implementation set regulatory and monitoring priorities for streams and rivers. Local stakeholders urged close engagement with ODA and DEQ to ensure monitoring locations, sampling methods and data acceptance are coordinated so that findings and any resulting requirements reflect local conditions.
What’s next: Martin said the Oregon Department of Agriculture will hold local outreach; a new ODA water quality specialist, Shiloh Simarel, has been introduced and will be in the area for outreach in April. Officials encouraged the county to post links and notices to increase public comment during ODA’s open comment period.
