Your annual allotment refers to the amount of water you will receive for a given water season. In a typical year, when the water is available, you will receive 4-acre-feet per acre. The Board of Directors and the Joint Committee of the Owyhee Project meet once a month to discuss the water forecast and determine, based on the weather conditions, snowpack, runoff, and reservoir storage, how much water would be feasible to allocate to our water users for the current season.

Please note: Water users do not pay for irrigation water. Water allotment can and will fluctuate each year. The law articulates that all water within Oregon belongs to the people of the state (ORS 537.110) and water users only have a right to this commodity if there is a beneficial use (ORS 537.120); one example of that is defined as irrigation of crops. For the current water rights to stay valid and not be canceled or removed, irrigation water must be put to beneficial use on all acres with existing water rights within a five (5) year period, or they may be subject to forfeit (ORS 540.610). 

LISTED BELOW IS SOME BASIC INFORMATION ON HOW WATER USAGE IS CALCULATED AND TRACKED

.20 inches = 1 foot of water

4 feet of water = 1 irrigated acre in a 24 hour period 

Water users will need to view water usage details through the Customer Portal or contact the office for assistance and/or an alternative option to view water usage data.

Discharge in Acre-Feet over a Weir for 24 hours

Discharge through a submerged Orifice in Acre Feet

Temporary Water Allotment Transfers

In difficult drought years, Management and the Board of Directors have agreed to allow Temporary Water Allotment Transfers. You are allowed to transfer water allotment from one parcel of property to another, as long as the criteria are met.

A few stipulations are: the ground must be owned or rented/leased with a preexisting agreement, and the transfer cannot exceed one ditch ride.   

We have a form available below to apply for a Temporary Water Allotment Transfer. 

In years when the full allocation of 4-acre-feet per acre is allotted, these transfers will not be accepted.