Perhaps nowhere along the Pacific coast are the impacts of intense, years-long drought more pronounced than in the Klamath River Basin. Spanning southern Oregon and northern California, the Klamath Basin encompasses a complex hydrologic system. The Upper Klamath Lake is a crucial habitat for the C’waam (Lost River sucker) and Koptu (shortnose sucker), and downstream, the Klamath River supports the Southern Oregon/Northern California Coast coho salmon. These species have tremendous subsistence, spiritual, cultural, and economic value for the Tribal communities that have lived in the Klamath Basin “since time immemorial,” including the Klamath Tribes and Hoopa Valley Tribe (“the Tribes” ). However, the fish species have significantly declined and are now threatened or endangered. Diversions for irrigation and severe droughts resulting from climate change have resulted in critically reduced water levels. Water from the Klamath Basin, distributed by irrigation districts, has also supported farming and ranching since the U.S. Reclamation Service began constructing dams and levees in 1905. Reliance on this water by the Tribes, fish, and irrigators has led to conflicts regarding the appropriate water level of the Upper Klamath Lake and instream flows of the Klamath River, which are results of decisions made by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (“Reclamation”).
Klamath Irrigation Dist. v. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation followed a 2021 drought year marked by wildfires and water shortages. The Ninth Circuit affirmed that Tribal treaty rights are senior to those of the irrigation districts and are central to Reclamation’s water management procedures. The court additionally found that the federal government did not adequately represent the Tribes’ interests in adequate lake levels and stream flows for the protected fish species. While this case is not the final word on Klamath water rights disputes, it sets the stage for prioritizing the rights of Tribes as water becomes scarcer.
