News Release Archive

Oxbow Site Management Plan Available for Public Input

Media Contact: John Redding, (208) 378-5212, jredding@pn.usbr.gov
Tanya Sommer , tsommer@pn.usbr.gov

For Release: November 24, 2006

The Bureau of Reclamation is seeking public input for its draft Oxbow Site Management Plan. The Oxbow site is a 222-acre property owned by Reclamation located on the east bank of the Umatilla River near Hermiston, OR.

Reclamation purchased the Oxbow property as part of a comprehensive anadromous fishery restoration program in the Umatilla River basin. The program implemented a series of water exchanges in which Columbia River water is pumped and delivered for use in the Umatilla Basin by irrigation districts in exchange for allowing Umatilla River water to benefit aquatic habitat. This water exchange allowed Reclamation to acquire water rights and property to improve habitat for the fishery. The Oxbow Site Management Plan will provide a framework for guiding present and future use of the site to ensure that such use is compatible with the restoration and protection of natural resources.

The plan is available on the internet at http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/lcao_misc/draft-oxbowsiteplan.pdf. Please send your comments to Tanya Sommer, Natural Resource Specialist, Bureau of Reclamation, 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd., Suite 750, Portland, OR 97232 by January 15, 2007. Copies of the plan are available by contacting Tanya Sommer.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.

Relevant Link:

http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/lcao_misc/draft-oxbowsiteplan.pdf