Who Doesn’t Want Cat Creek Energy to get Rights to Anderson Ranch Reservoir Water?

In May 2017, Cat Creek Energy, LLC applied to draw 101,000 acre-feet of water from the South Fork of the Boise River water basin. This water would actually be pumped up to a new reservoir on Little Camas Prairie from Anderson Ranch Reservoir via a series of penstocks located across the lake from Evans Creek Campground.

This proposed new reservoir, Cat Creek Reservoir, is scheduled to be built just one mile or so north of Little Camas Reservoir and very close to three possible greater sage grouse nesting grounds, called a “lek.”

September 24, 2018, marked the deadline for individuals, groups and even other government agencies to file a protest against Cat Creek Energy’s water permit with the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR). By that deadline, 19 protests were filed against that water permit application.

Who Are Those 19 Protesters?

Here are just some of the names:

The Boise office of the Bureau of Reclamation (https://www.usbr.gov/).
The Idaho Conservation League (https://www.idahoconservation.org/).
The Boise Project Board of Control (www.boiseproject.net/index.php?pg=about).
SUEZ Water Idaho, Inc. (https://www.mysuezwater.com/idaho/about-us).
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (https://idfg.idaho.gov/).
The City of Boise City (https://www.cityofboise.org/).
A consortium of water related companies and irrigation districts that include: Ballentyne Ditch Company, Boise Valley Irrigation Ditch Company, Canyon County Water Company, Eureka Water Company, Farmers’ Co-operative Ditch Company, Middleton Mill Ditch Company, Middleton Irrigation Association, Inc., Nampa & Meridian Irrigation District, New Dry Creek Ditch Company, Pioneer Ditch Company, Pioneer Irrigation District, Settlers Irrigation District, South Boise Water Company, and Thurman Mill Ditch Company.
S Bar Ranch (Facebook @SBarRanch or https://www.facebook.com/SBarRanch/)

Again this is just eight of the 19 entities that filed a protest for many different and various legal/practical reasons.

These 19 protest letters filed with the Idaho Department of Water Resources tells us that the Cat Creek Energy pumped-storage hydroelectric facility is an ill-conceived plan.

“IDFG is concerned that the requested water diversion and associated hydroelectric project could adversely affect important public fisheries and Endangered Species Act protected bull trout populations within affected river and reservoir reaches of the Boise River system.” ~ Idaho Department of Fish and Game

Reference: Water-Permit-Protests-CatCreekEnergyOct2018.pdf at http://catcreek-energy.com/download/658/

Results From the Oct. 5, 2018 Cat Creek Energy Public Hearing

*If the Cat Creek Energy project gets approved, this is what you can expect to see on Little Camas Prairie.*

A public hearing regarding the Cat Creek Energy and Elmore County Development Agreement was held on Friday, October 5, 2018. However, Cat Creek Energy lawyers and the county commissioners could not come to a satisfactory agreement over water issues and Cat Creek bowed out of this public hearing that they requested in September 2018.

With Cat Creek Energy withdrawing their draft amendment to the development agreement, the Elmore County Commissioners decided there was no reason to take public testimony on the issue. Chairman Wes Wootan and Commissioner Corbus voted to close out the public hearing immediately following a quick briefing by Buzz Grant, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) legal counsel.

Mr. Grant indicated that Cat Creek Energy is aware that the incomplete Development Agreement needs to be finalized by December 31, 2018, or the conditional use permit for at least one portion of the mega-project will expire and be null and void.

The county fully expects Cat Creek Energy representatives will come back to the negotiating table in the future. Concerned citizens, the S Bar Ranch, and many others are closely monitoring all the shenanigans and legal maneuvering of Cat Creek Energy, LLC and will continue to post updates both on this website and on our Facebook page at @SbarRanch / https://www.facebook.com/SBarRanch/

Please help us get the word out by sharing this blog and/or Facebook posts.

Commissioners Select Oct. 5 for a new Cat Creek Energy Public Hearing

Public testimony will be accepted at a 1:30 p.m. hearing on Friday, October 5, 2018, in the Elmore County Courthouse regarding the Cat Creek Energy project. This public meeting was made necessary when the county commissioners refused to approve Cat Creek Energy’s previous draft amendment during a September 7, 2018 hearing pertaining to a development agreement between the fledgling energy company and the county.

During that Sept. 7^th hearing, Commissioner Corbus lectured the lawyers and spokesmen for Cat Creek Energy for trying to undermine the county’s efforts to obtain a water right from the South Fork of the Boise River. The major concern that the commissioners had with the proposal was the lack of detail Cat Creek provided for the money they could be charging the county for any water they might deliver to the citizens.

This new hearing and the proposed amendment is obviously an effort to smooth things over after the two parties walked away from the deal. In previous meetings, Corbus indicated that Cat Creek Energy categorically stated Elmore County wouldn’t have to worry about getting the water down to the Mountain Home area as Cat Creek Energy could get it there. However, Corbus said the actions and protests Cat Creek threw in front of the county was a sign that the energy company didn’t mean what it said.

According to Elmore County documents, “Any and all interested persons shall be heard at said hearing and the public is welcome and invited to submit testimony. Testimony will be limited to the Amendment of the Development Agreement and its terms and conditions.

Anyone who wishes to testify, but is unable to attend, may submit written testimony prior to the hearing by sending it to:

Elmore County Land Use and Building Department
520 East 2nd South Street,
Mountain Home, Idaho, 83647

Download the Public Hearing Notice by clicking here … Oct. 5, 2018 Public Hearing - Cat Creek Energy Development Agreement

or, the same information in a public link at http://catcreek-energy.com/download/586/

S Bar Ranch Letter to Congressman Mike Simpson

*This is what the road leading to the Cat Creek Summit Scenic Overlook would look like with wind turbines.*

Chris Stephens, owner of the S Bar Ranch located on the western portion of Camas Prairie wrote to Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson and the rest of the Idaho Congressional Delegation explaining why the proposed Cat Creek Energy project is incompatible with the local environment and the wishes of many local residents and ranchers.

Please download and review this letter at … S Bar Ranch Letter to Idaho's Congressman Mike Simpson

Here is a copy of the letter the S Bar Ranch mailed to Congressman Raul Labrador … S Bar Ranch Letter to Idaho's Congressman Raul Labrador

To view the letter to Senator Crapo please click here … S Bar Ranch Letter to Idaho's Senator Mike Crapo

Here is a snippet from that letter:
I believe that this Project has not been fully vetted by the Federal and State agencies,
including but not limited to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the National
Environmental Protection Agency, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, the Idaho Public
Utility Commission, and the State of Idaho Department of Water Resources, who oversee our
Federal government’s and State’s critical wildlife, fish habitat, and environment. It is my
opinion, and the opinion of many other people that this Project should not proceed until all
parties fully understand what affect this Project will have on our land and the citizens of Elmore
County

We hope you will take the time to research why this mega-project, slated to be built in Elmore County, is not compatible with Idaho’s time-honored tradition of being good stewards of our land. Once you do the research you may wish to write to your Idaho Congressional Delegation to ask them for help in delaying this project until all issues have been explained and satisfactorily negotiated.

Idaho Congressional Delegation and Mailing Addresses:

Idaho’s 2nd Congressional District
Congressman Mike Simpson
2084 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: 202-225-5531

Idaho’s 1st Congressional District
Congressman Raul Labrador
1523 Longworth HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: 202- 225-6611

Idaho’s Freshman Senator
U.S. Senator James E. Risch
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-2752

Idaho’s Senior Senator
Senator Mike Crapo
239 Dirksen Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202- 224-6142

S Bar Ranch Officially Protests Cat Creek Energy’s Water Application

*We don’t want power lines, towers and buildings crowding out elk, deer and sage grouse on Little Camas Prairie.*

Chris Stephens and the S Bar Ranch has officially submitted a protest against John Faulkner’s Cat Creek Energy, LLC water permit. This protest was submitted to the Idaho Department of Water Resources because we believe that creating a new 100,000 acre-foot reservoir on the bluffs above Anderson Ranch Reservoir is dangerous to downstream residents but also because there are too many unanswered questions about the entire reservoir project.

You can view/download the protest by clicking here … S Bar Ranch Protest to Water Right Application

You can also use this document as an example to file your own protest with the Idaho Department of Water Resources. NOTICE: All water permit protests need to be submitted by Monday, September 24, 2018.

An additional link to download is here: http://catcreek-energy.com/download/545/

Protesting Cat Creek Energy’s Water Right Application

Cat Creek Energy has recently applied for a water right on the South Fork of the Boise River (Anderson Ranch Reservoir) and we believe the public needs to stop them from getting that permit until many critical environmental and wildlife issues can be publicly addressed.

The deadline to officially protest Cat Creek Energy’s permit is September 24, 2018, and we need your help.

Click here to download Cat Creek Energy’s original water right application … CCE Water Permit Application SFB-River Water Right

Link to the download can be found here: http://catcreek-energy.com/download/522/

The Situation as it Stands

Cat Creek Energy is moving forward with plans for building what could be a disaster for the residents of Elmore County, our big game herds, the birds of prey population, plus our fishery and water quality in Anderson Ranch Reservoir. Those plans involve building a 100,000 acre-foot reservoir on Little Camas Prairie, 23 miles to the northeast of Mountain Home, Idaho. This body of water will be interconnected to Anderson Ranch Reservoir and located on the adjacent bluffs just 723 feet above Anderson Ranch Reservoir.

Might you be able to throw a rock while standing on the shoreline of the planned Cat Creek Reservoir and hit Anderson Reservoir without much problem?

The area where John Faulkner wants to build out his mega-energy project is considered prime habitat for elk, mule deer, pronghorn, the near-endangered sage grouse plus the threatened fish we call the Bull Trout.

Some Possible Justifications to Protest the Water Right

Fact: Anderson Ranch Reservoir will be interconnected with huge water tubes (penstocks) to Cat Creek Reservoir. There are no guarantees John Faulkner will control the water quality in his reservoir as it sluices water back into Anderson. Anderson Ranch Reservoir is home to the threatened bull trout.
Fact: Critical water temperature levels could easily be exceeded as warm water from the planned Cat Creek Reservoir drains back into Anderson Ranch, according to state and federal agencies.
Fact: Little Camas Reservoir has had a toxic blue-green algae health advisory issued on that body of water since June 2018. The Little Camas Reservoir – Cat Creek Reservoir – Anderson Ranch Reservoirs will all be interconnected. Cross-contamination of the blue-green algae is quite possible.
Fact: The planned Cat Creek Reservoir and its the entire hydro/water project is in critical sage grouse territory, a major migration corridor for elk, mule deer, and pronghorn.
Fact: Because Cat Creek Energy will be drawing 100,000 acre-feet of water from Anderson Ranch Reservoir, the water levels will be affected for all who come to recreate on ‘Anderson’ and in turn will hurt our Pine and Featherville businesses and our tourism industry.

How To Protest – $25 IDWR Fee

As with any governmental action and procedure, it will require some of your valuable time and cost you some money. If you have the will and the money, please consider filing an official protest of this Cat Creek Energy water right.

If you do not wish to file the $25 protest, please consider sending us your legal name and official home address so we can append it to S Bar Ranch protest documentation that will be sent to the Idaho Department of Water Resources. We could also use your name, and just your name in posts on this website or on social media.

1. Fill out the required protest form found at https://idwr.idaho.gov/files/forms/notice-of-protest.pdf

2. The following information should be included in your protest paperwork:

The basis of protest (including a statement of facts and law upon which the protest is based)
Application for Permit No. 63-34403
In the name of:
Cat Creek Energy, LLC
398 S 9^th ST STE 240
Boise, ID 83701
Important: A copy of your “Notice of Protest” must be sent to Cat Creek Energy, LLC at the above address.

Reference Material

Idaho Statue TITLE 42 IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE — WATER RIGHTS AND RECLAMATION CHAPTER 2 APPROPRIATION OF WATER — PERMITS, CERTIFICATES, AND LICENSES — SURVEY // 42-203A, found at https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title42/t42ch2/sect42-203a/

Idaho Statue 42-221. Paragraph L. states the following:

“For filing a protest or request to intervene in a protested matter [will cost] $25.00” (https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title42/T42CH2/SECT42-221/)

Cat Creek Energy – A Problem, Not A Solution!

Camas Prairie, Elmore County, Idaho

Tag Archives: Water