Irrigation: Do the math

Ria Burns, apparently the manager for the state’s Department of Ecology’s water resources, including the Skagit River, would do well to take some classes on hydraulics. The only way to harm fish by taking water from the Skagit for irrigation would be if it were taken from above the spawning grounds. From Concrete on down, if every farm along the way had irrigation pumps and all were pumping, they could not reduce the river level at the lower end enough to measure, especially with variants such as rain, wind and tides. At the worst it might increase the flow rate in places.

Prior to the dams, the flow rate had to be faster than it is today, but the fish got there just fine. The average flow rate of the Skagit River at Hamilton, according to the internet is 16,530 cubic feet per second, which equals over ten and a half billion gallons a day. Below the spawning grounds, if the river is eight-feet deep or seven-foot-six-inches deep the salmon go where they go unhindered providing there are no nets in front of them.

The water used for irrigation in Skagit County is about like dipping a 5-gallon pail of water out of Lake 16 to dowse your campfire. The irrigation issue is all political to pacify the tribes and has nothing to do with salmon. It is a decision made by people in power who do not think they are doing their jobs unless they say no. Even if it were proven that irrigation lowered the river level, a slight push of a button at the dams would make up the difference. A spring shower would do the same.

Denny Sather

Mount Vernon