Experts split over Meadowview hydrology: applicant expert says added streamflow helps Barker Creek; critics warn recharge and thermal risks

Meadowview hydrologic and stormwater design drew contested expert testimony during oral cross-examination and rebuttal at the Kitsap County hearing on Jan. 13, 2025. The applicant’s retained consultant, J. Scott Kindred, testified that his analysis finds small increases in runoff to Island Lake and modest additional flow to Barker Creek, and he supported the project’s approach to convey and disperse stormwater. Appellants’ experts challenged those conclusions, saying the record lacks the fine-scale hydrogeologic analysis needed to judge effects on the Island Lake aquifer, Barker Creek baseflow and stream temperatures.

The applicant hired Kindred to evaluate hydrologic concerns raised earlier in the matter. Kindred said he visited the site on Feb. 5, 2024 and submitted a technical report (admitted as Exhibit B‑10) and a written testimony package (Exhibit B‑11). He described his credentials as a professional engineer and licensed hydrogeologist and said his work focused on whether the proposed subdivision’s dispersion trenches and stormwater ponds would change groundwater recharge, creek flows or lake levels.

Kindred testified his December 11, 2024 report was essentially the same as a March 2024 draft except for one change: he removed a recommendation to maximize on-site groundwater recharge and instead endorsed routing additional average flow toward Barker Creek because, he said, the net ecological benefit to Barker Creek (fish habitat) outweighed a small reduction in recharge. He estimated the project would raise average annual runoff to Island Lake by about 1.4…