The Klamath Basin covers over 12,000 mi² in southern Oregon and northern California and contains natural resources and economic opportunities related to fisheries, farming, ranching, timber harvest, mining, and recreation. (fig. 1A on the Science tab). These resources and opportunities economically sustain many communities throughout the basin, including six federally recognized Indian tribes who depend on many of these same natural resources to support their way of life and spiritual wellbeing, as they have for thousands of years (U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of Commerce, and National Marine Fishery Service, 2012).
Authors: Larisa Serbina and Holly Miller
Although rich in natural resources, communities throughout the Klamath Basin have faced repeated hardships because of water shortages, degraded water quality, diminished fisheries, and the need to protect three fish species under the Federal Endangered Species Act. These hardships have been most strongly felt by Indian tribes, commercial and recreational fishing communities, farmers, and ranchers, but they also affect the economy of the entire basin. Although hardships and conflicts have been prevalent for decades, they became particularly acute from 2001 to 2010. The conflicts included reduced water deliveries to the Bureau of Reclamation’s Klamath Project, a major salmon fish die-off, and severe restrictions on commercial and sport salmon fishing along 700 miles of the Oregon and California coastline. These issues, among others, prompted development of the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA) and the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA), which were signed by a diverse group of over 40 local, Tribal, State, and Federal stakeholders in 2010. The KHSA provides for the study and evaluation of the potential removal of the four lower dams on the Klamath River that are owned by PacifiCorp. Although these dams provide locally important hydropower, they have also contributed to declines in fisheries and degraded water quality in the basin (fig. 1B). The KBRA contains many programs for resource restoration and re-balancing water sharing among multiple beneficial uses in the basin, including agriculture, fisheries, and National Wildlife Refuges (U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of Commerce, and National Marine Fishery Service, 2012).
![Klamath River and Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon. Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/Figure_26.png?itok=enZ963jh)
The KBRA Water Use Retirement Program was developed to reduce agricultural water demand by 30,000 acre feet upstream of Reclamation’s Klamath Project in order to provide more in-stream flow for fish and more reliable water deliveries to National Wildlife Refuges. This will be accomplished by acquiring water rights from willing sellers in the Upper Basin. Evaluation of water rights, and the actual water used on the land associated with those water rights, should be conducted in the area prior to acquiring a water right to ensure a water right retirement will achieve the expected goals. For example, purchasing a large water right could result in minimal in-stream benefits if that water right has not been used to its full extent or at all (Dan Snyder, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013). Thus a determination should be made about which water rights are being exercised to their fullest extent in order to retire water rights that would create the largest water savings. Landsat thermal imagery provides information for this type of assessment. It allows for the identification of crops and evapotranspiration mapping of the entire basin.
Historical Landsat data from 2004 and 2006 were crucial in determining the consumptive water use for the 2 years. Evapotranspiration data was mapped using Landsat imagery and METRIC software for most of the upper Klamath Basin (Snyder and others, 2012). This information provides the KBRA team and water-user groups with the opportunity to spend funds in the most efficient way possible in order to meet the goals of the restoration agreement. Identification of water right purchases with the highest consumptive use enables the team to get the most “bang for their buck” (Dan Snyder, oral commun. and written commun., 2013). More importantly, it provides for the optimal solution and maximum amount of water contributed to in-stream flow and achieves the objective of increasing inflow to Upper Klamath Lake. Using Landsat data also allowed the researchers to track monthly and seasonal evapotranspiration, due to the frequency of data supplied from the satellite.
In the case that Landsat imagery had not been available, aerial photography would have been used as a substitute. The use of aerial photography would greatly limit the availability and type of data available for use, as it is collected infrequently. While Landsat imagery covers the entire upper Klamath Basin, aerial photography would only make small sections available for processing at a time. This alternative is much more time and dollar intensive, and does not capture thermal data, thus the use of METRIC to map evapotranspiration would not be possible. Aerial scanning does capture the thermal data, and so it is another substitute to Landsat data. However, aerial scanning is very costly and requires much more processing time as the scenes are much smaller than those of Landsat. Another plausible substitute for Landsat satellite imagery is MODIS imagery; however, the 1,000-meter resolution is too coarse to allow the evapotranspiration identification of fields and landforms needed for analysis. Landsat remains the only viable option to use due to its resolution, thermal band and free availability (Marshall Gannett, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013).
Evaluation of potential voluntary water-rights purchases based on the water-rights documentation alone would not accurately reflect use. This alternative approach is not as efficient and is more time intensive than the use of Landsat data. More importantly, it may lead to water-right acquisitions that either do not contribute to in-stream flows, or contribute small amounts at high costs. In the case of the Upper Klamath Basin, Landsat thermal data allows the stakeholders within the basin to invest their funds effectively with a guarantee of an optimal return (Dan Snyder, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013).
References:
Marshall Gannett, Hydrologist, Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey.
Dan Snyder, Hydrologist, Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey.
Snyder, D.T., Risley, J.C., and Haynes, J.V., 2012, Hydrological information products for the Off-Project Water Program of the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2012–1199, 20 p., https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2012/1199.
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Marine Fishery Service. October 2012, Klamath Dam removal overview, report for the Secretary of the Interior—An assessment of science and technical information: Yreka, Calif., KalamathRestoration.gov, accessed on April 5, 2013
Return to Environment from 'Landsat Imagery: A Unique Resource'
The Klamath Basin covers over 12,000 mi² in southern Oregon and northern California and contains natural resources and economic opportunities related to fisheries, farming, ranching, timber harvest, mining, and recreation. (fig. 1A on the Science tab). These resources and opportunities economically sustain many communities throughout the basin, including six federally recognized Indian tribes who depend on many of these same natural resources to support their way of life and spiritual wellbeing, as they have for thousands of years (U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of Commerce, and National Marine Fishery Service, 2012).
Authors: Larisa Serbina and Holly Miller
Although rich in natural resources, communities throughout the Klamath Basin have faced repeated hardships because of water shortages, degraded water quality, diminished fisheries, and the need to protect three fish species under the Federal Endangered Species Act. These hardships have been most strongly felt by Indian tribes, commercial and recreational fishing communities, farmers, and ranchers, but they also affect the economy of the entire basin. Although hardships and conflicts have been prevalent for decades, they became particularly acute from 2001 to 2010. The conflicts included reduced water deliveries to the Bureau of Reclamation’s Klamath Project, a major salmon fish die-off, and severe restrictions on commercial and sport salmon fishing along 700 miles of the Oregon and California coastline. These issues, among others, prompted development of the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA) and the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA), which were signed by a diverse group of over 40 local, Tribal, State, and Federal stakeholders in 2010. The KHSA provides for the study and evaluation of the potential removal of the four lower dams on the Klamath River that are owned by PacifiCorp. Although these dams provide locally important hydropower, they have also contributed to declines in fisheries and degraded water quality in the basin (fig. 1B). The KBRA contains many programs for resource restoration and re-balancing water sharing among multiple beneficial uses in the basin, including agriculture, fisheries, and National Wildlife Refuges (U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of Commerce, and National Marine Fishery Service, 2012).
![Klamath River and Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon. Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/Figure_26.png?itok=enZ963jh)
The KBRA Water Use Retirement Program was developed to reduce agricultural water demand by 30,000 acre feet upstream of Reclamation’s Klamath Project in order to provide more in-stream flow for fish and more reliable water deliveries to National Wildlife Refuges. This will be accomplished by acquiring water rights from willing sellers in the Upper Basin. Evaluation of water rights, and the actual water used on the land associated with those water rights, should be conducted in the area prior to acquiring a water right to ensure a water right retirement will achieve the expected goals. For example, purchasing a large water right could result in minimal in-stream benefits if that water right has not been used to its full extent or at all (Dan Snyder, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013). Thus a determination should be made about which water rights are being exercised to their fullest extent in order to retire water rights that would create the largest water savings. Landsat thermal imagery provides information for this type of assessment. It allows for the identification of crops and evapotranspiration mapping of the entire basin.
Historical Landsat data from 2004 and 2006 were crucial in determining the consumptive water use for the 2 years. Evapotranspiration data was mapped using Landsat imagery and METRIC software for most of the upper Klamath Basin (Snyder and others, 2012). This information provides the KBRA team and water-user groups with the opportunity to spend funds in the most efficient way possible in order to meet the goals of the restoration agreement. Identification of water right purchases with the highest consumptive use enables the team to get the most “bang for their buck” (Dan Snyder, oral commun. and written commun., 2013). More importantly, it provides for the optimal solution and maximum amount of water contributed to in-stream flow and achieves the objective of increasing inflow to Upper Klamath Lake. Using Landsat data also allowed the researchers to track monthly and seasonal evapotranspiration, due to the frequency of data supplied from the satellite.
In the case that Landsat imagery had not been available, aerial photography would have been used as a substitute. The use of aerial photography would greatly limit the availability and type of data available for use, as it is collected infrequently. While Landsat imagery covers the entire upper Klamath Basin, aerial photography would only make small sections available for processing at a time. This alternative is much more time and dollar intensive, and does not capture thermal data, thus the use of METRIC to map evapotranspiration would not be possible. Aerial scanning does capture the thermal data, and so it is another substitute to Landsat data. However, aerial scanning is very costly and requires much more processing time as the scenes are much smaller than those of Landsat. Another plausible substitute for Landsat satellite imagery is MODIS imagery; however, the 1,000-meter resolution is too coarse to allow the evapotranspiration identification of fields and landforms needed for analysis. Landsat remains the only viable option to use due to its resolution, thermal band and free availability (Marshall Gannett, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013).
Evaluation of potential voluntary water-rights purchases based on the water-rights documentation alone would not accurately reflect use. This alternative approach is not as efficient and is more time intensive than the use of Landsat data. More importantly, it may lead to water-right acquisitions that either do not contribute to in-stream flows, or contribute small amounts at high costs. In the case of the Upper Klamath Basin, Landsat thermal data allows the stakeholders within the basin to invest their funds effectively with a guarantee of an optimal return (Dan Snyder, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun. and written commun., 2013).
References:
Marshall Gannett, Hydrologist, Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey.
Dan Snyder, Hydrologist, Oregon Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey.
Snyder, D.T., Risley, J.C., and Haynes, J.V., 2012, Hydrological information products for the Off-Project Water Program of the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2012–1199, 20 p., https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2012/1199.
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Marine Fishery Service. October 2012, Klamath Dam removal overview, report for the Secretary of the Interior—An assessment of science and technical information: Yreka, Calif., KalamathRestoration.gov, accessed on April 5, 2013
Return to Environment from 'Landsat Imagery: A Unique Resource'