The speakers at Thursday’s watershed management forum. | Courtesy Bonneville County Commissioner District 1 candidates
The following is a news release from the candidates for Bonneville County Commissioner District 1.
IDAHO FALLS — Water is proving to be a hot topic this political season. A bipartisan forum on watershed management will be held Thursday, Aug. 29, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Tingey Auditorium at University Place in Idaho Falls
Rather than focus on the current conflict between certain groundwater and surface water users, this discussion will look more broadly at the management of surface and groundwater between Palisades and American Falls reservoirs. Speakers will explore the potential costs and benefits of various management actions to both county residents and downstream users. They will cover issues related to agricultural irrigation, hydropower, DCMI (domestic, commercial, municipal, industrial) uses, and fish and wildlife habitat as affected by water management. Also of interest is recent research into the potential for flood irrigation to act as an effective means of aquifer recharge in the shoulder seasons when senior surface-water water rights are available. Featured speakers are:
Jeff Raybould, Chairman, Idaho Water Resource Board
James Cefalo, Regional Manager, Idaho Department of Water Resources Eastern Region
Mayor Rebecca Casper, City of Idaho Falls
Dr. Rob Van Kirk, Science and Technology Director, Henry’s Fork Foundation
Dr. Christina Morrisett, Climate Adaptation Program Manager, Henry’s Fork Foundation
Background on November’s Bonneville County Commissioner race
As Commissioner Roger Christensen wraps up 30 years of service to Bonneville County this year, local voters will face a choice between two enthusiastic candidates vying to replace him.
Last May, Republican Karl Casperson and Democrat Jan Brown won their respective primaries and will compete in November for Christensen’s District #1 Commission seat. After meeting in person, the candidates agreed that local and regional challenges are best resolved through collaborative approaches, so they decided to try something different to reach out to voters – and to do it together.
The candidates are organizing two bipartisan, educational forums on current topics that will be open to the public. The forums will delve into Snake River watershed management challenges on Aug. 29 and on Sept. 18, the focus will be the impacts of rapid growth on Bonneville County residents.
In addition, Brown and Casperson want to learn more about residents’ concerns with outdoor recreation access and opportunities inside Bonneville County, so they are tentatively planning a series of bipartisan listening posts at key public recreation sites in the Swan Valley vicinity on Saturday, Sept. 28.
Finally, the candidates are arranging a tour of public and private waste management and recycling facilities in Bonneville County for Friday afternoon, Oct. 11. One of the stops on this proposed self-guided tour will highlight INL’s involvement in developing new technologies for solid waste recovery.
Brown and Casperson hope these educational opportunities will build enthusiasm for the November election and encourage more citizens to get engaged in county government and planning processes.
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Source: eastidahonews.com
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