City of Mattawa to get Columbia River water rights

MATTAWA — The city of Mattawa is getting close to running out of water. To overcome this problem, the city has applied for water rights from the Columbia River. The subject was discussed during a Mattawa City Council meeting on Thursday, July 2.

According to Mattawa Public Works Director Juan Ledezma, the city applied for the water rights back in 2018.

“We knew this was coming,” Ledezma said. “We didn’t know it was coming this fast. Typically things like this are in the pipeline for seven to 10 years.”

The water rights will give the city an additional 200 acre-feet of water.

“This gives us the ability for growth and development that requires lots of water,” Ledezma said.

The cost for the water rights is $7,000 a year or $35 per acre-foot. The payment for the water will come out of the city’s water fund.

“We don’t want to lose the right to use the water,” said Mattawa Mayor Scott Hyndman.

City Planner Darryl Piercy said that the building projects that are currently in the works will take up most of the city’s water supply.

During the meeting, the council approved the acquisition of the water rights. Ledezma said that he hopes to be able to put off the first water payment until 2021.