{"id":28740,"date":"2017-10-12T14:05:44","date_gmt":"2017-10-12T19:05:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=28740"},"modified":"2017-10-12T18:56:00","modified_gmt":"2017-10-12T23:56:00","slug":"a-river-of-uncertainty-lingers-as-state-approves-okcs-permit-for-southeastern-oklahoma-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2017\/10\/12\/a-river-of-uncertainty-lingers-as-state-approves-okcs-permit-for-southeastern-oklahoma-water\/","title":{"rendered":"A River of Uncertainty Lingers As State Approves OKC\u2019s Permit For Southeastern Oklahoma Water"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_28745\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><a class=\"fancybox\" title=\"Jerry Gutierrez steers his golf cart on a tour of his ranch near the Kiamichi River in southeastern Oklahoma. Gutierrez and other nearby residents urged the state not to approve Oklahoma City's permit to tap water from river.\" href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28745\" alt=\"Jerry Gutierrez steers his golf cart on a tour of his ranch near the Kiamichi River in southeastern Oklahoma. Gutierrez and other nearby residents urged the state not to approve Oklahoma City's permit to tap water from river.\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics031_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jerry Gutierrez steers his golf cart on a tour of his ranch near the Kiamichi River in southeastern Oklahoma. Gutierrez and other nearby residents urged the state not to approve Oklahoma City&#39;s permit to tap water from river.<\/p>\n<\/div><p>Oklahoma City\u2019s decades-long quest for a permit to pump water out of southeastern Oklahoma is over. This week, state regulators approved a key part of the city\u2019s $1 billion-plus project to meet the metro\u2019s long-term water needs, but residents and water rights groups say the urban victory marks a milestone \u2014 not the end of the road.<\/p><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/346593659&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=false\" height=\"150\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p><p><!--more-->Oklahoma City has water storage rights at Sardis Lake in southeastern Oklahoma. To get it, the city plans to divert water that flows from the lake into the Kiamichi River and pump it more than a hundred miles northwest to the metro.<\/p><p>The city first applied for a permit to access its Sardis water in 2007, but the effort proved controversial and was delayed by <a href=\"http:\/\/kosu.org\/post\/fight-over-sardis-lake-entangled-ancient-history-indian-culture-and-sacred-water\">local opposition<\/a> and federal lawsuits filed by the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations. Those lawsuits were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj50aLgzevWAhVJrFQKHUMWCSQQFgg2MAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fstateimpact.npr.org%2Foklahoma%2F2016%2F08%2F12%2Finside-the-landmark-state-and-tribal-agreement-that-ends-standoff-over-water-in-southeast-oklahoma%2F&usg=AOvVaw0Yhr7sHtHbfHXmNOr6WNQk\">resolved in 2016<\/a>, through a Congressionally approved agreement <a href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2016\/12\/19\/obama-signs-bill-that-officially-end-southeast-oklahomas-tribal-water-fight\/\">signed<\/a> by then-President Barack Obama.<\/p><p>Staff at the Oklahoma Water Resources Board used technical information on water-use conditions developed during settlement negotiations to create a hydrological model of the Kiamichi River Basin and a lake level management plan for area lakes. Lawyers for Oklahoma City used this model in applying for an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.owrb.ok.gov\/legal\/OKC2007-0017\/OKC2007-0017.php\">amended permit<\/a> filed in January 2017.<\/p><p>Eighty-five residents residents and organizations, including the Kiamichi River Legacy Association and Oklahomans for Responsible Water Policy, formally protested Oklahoma City\u2019s application and urged the water board to deny the permit.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28744\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><a class=\"fancybox\" title=\"Tom Garrett stands near a rocky beach at the K River Campground, which he owns. Garrett says Oklahoma City's water withdrawal permit could flood the beach and slow the flow of the river, hurting canoe and kayak rentals he depends on.\" href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28744\" alt=\"Tom Garrett stands near a rocky beach at the K River Campground, which he owns. Garrett says Oklahoma City's water withdrawal permit could flood the beach and slow the flow of the river, hurting canoe and kayak rentals he depends on.\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"391\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB-500x315.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB-150x95.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics007_WEB-300x189.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tom Garrett stands near a rocky beach at the K River Campground, which he owns. Garrett says Oklahoma City&#39;s water withdrawal permit could flood the beach and slow the flow of the river, hurting canoe and kayak rentals he depends on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>\u2018Bought the river\u2019<\/h3><p>Tom Garrett grew up on a cotton farm in western Oklahoma. Sixteen years ago, he relocated to a tree-lined stretch of the Kiamichi River and opened the K River Campgrounds.<\/p><p>\u201cI always wanted to own a river, so I bought the river,\u201d he says.<\/p><p>The shaded campground has picnic tables, RV hookups and racks of canoes and kayaks for tourists who want to trek down the Kiamichi.<\/p><p>\u201cIf you live in Oklahoma City and western Oklahoma, you&#8217;d never imagine it would be here,\u201d he says.<\/p><p>Oklahoma City\u2019s permit allows it to<i> <\/i>dam and tap the Kiamichi at one of four possible points. The city has not yet decided which point it will use, but all four surround the K River Campground. Garrett says any of the four withdrawal locations will likely increase the amount of water in the stretch of river near his business \u2014 and change its flow.<\/p><p>Higher water levels could flood out the campground\u2019s rocky beach, which Garrett says is a major attraction. He also worries Oklahoma City\u2019s diversion could slow currents that bring in tourists.<\/p><p>\u201cIt\u2019s not much fun to canoe on a lake,\u201d Garrett says. \u201cNot like it is down a river with a little action to it.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28742\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><a class=\"fancybox\" title=\"The Kiamichi River near Moyers Crossing, north of Antlers, Okla.\" href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28742\" alt=\"The Kiamichi River near Moyers Crossing, north of Antlers, Okla.\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics088_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Kiamichi River near Moyers Crossing, north of Antlers, Okla.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>River rarity<\/h3><p>A mile up the road, Jerry Gutierrez ditches his pickup for a golf cart \u2014 the best way to tour the 133 acres that surround his home and a vacation cottage he rents to tourists. Gutierrez built the home himself, which has views of a small oxbow lake and trails that meet the Kiamichi River. The ranch has deer, otters, ducks and beavers. Eagles nest in trees and stalk bass swimming below.<\/p><p>\u201cThis is a real rarity,\u201d he says, stopping the golf cart momentarily to watch a pair of white-tailed deer bound through rows of slender trees.<\/p><p>Gutierrez says government teams recently surveyed the oxbow lake on his property, and he\u2019s suspicious that an increase in low-flying airplanes and drones mean Oklahoma City is eyeing his property for a dam and water-diversion point.<\/p><p>\u201cWhatever they\u2019re doing, they\u2019re not telling us,\u201d he says. \u201cMaybe it\u2019ll be a bad thing, but maybe it will turn everything I own into lakefront property. We just can\u2019t figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28743\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><a class=\"fancybox\" title=\"Jerry Gutierrez walks down a trail to the Kiamichi River.\" href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB.jpg\" rel=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-28743\" alt=\"Jerry Gutierrez walks down a trail to the Kiamichi River.\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2017\/10\/20171010-kiamichi-pics033_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Joe Wertz \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jerry Gutierrez walks down a trail to the Kiamichi River.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Next steps<\/h3><p>Lawyers representing southeastern Oklahoma residents said the state and city\u2019s research on the Kiamichi was inadequate and unscientific, and didn\u2019t properly account for the water needs of fish, wildlife and tourism.<\/p><p>Lawyers for the city disagreed. In the end, so did the state. A few hours after StateImpact interviewed Garrett and Gutierrez, regulators approved the permit. The lone \u201cno\u201d vote was cast by the only water board member from southeastern Oklahoma.<\/p><p>Garrett and Gutierrez expected the permit\u2019s approval. It\u2019s a milestone, but they say it\u2019s not the end of the road, Garrett says. \u201cWe don\u2019t give up, just like they don\u2019t give up.\u201d<\/p><p>One possible next step: another courtroom. The state didn\u2019t agree with the push for more thorough studies of the Kiamichi River and the effect Oklahoma City\u2019s water withdrawal could have. Gutierrez hopes a federal judge will.<\/p><p>\u201cThis river is our life,\u201d he says. \u201cWe can\u2019t have it taken away from us without a fight.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Oklahoma City\u2019s decades-long quest for a permit to pump water out of southeastern Oklahoma is over. This week, state regulators approved a key part of the city\u2019s $1 billion-plus project to meet the metro\u2019s long-term water needs, but residents and water rights groups say the urban victory marks a milestone \u2014 not the end of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":28743,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[491],"tags":[163,538],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28740"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28740"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28740\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28754,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28740\/revisions\/28754"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28743"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}