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~ WESTERN RECEIVED August 25, 199<A, Issue No. 1lI U G 2 8 1995 ~. STATE DIR . sc ASC F WATE I L E THE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER OF THE WESTERN STATES WATER COUNCIL Creekview Plaza, Suite A-20l/942 East 7145 So. / Midvale, Utah 84047 / (801) 561-5300 / FAX (801) 255-9642 Chairman - Larry Anderson; Executive Director - Craig Bell; Editor - Craig Bell; Typist - Alona Banks WATER QUALITY EPA Budget Priorities .. . EPA Administrator Carol Browner has convened a high-level task force to identify long-term priorities for implementing potential budget cuts in FY1996. The "Directions 2000 Work Group" is charged with developing "in consultation with the programs and the regions, the key principles and priorities that will guide our core activities....[and] define our essential work," according to Administrator Browner's August 9 memo to EPA's Senior leadership Council (Sle). The Directions 2000 Work Group will offer final recommendations by September 8. The SlC will then have until September 22 to comment on the report. The Directions 2000 Work Group is comprised of over a dozen high-level agency officials. Its director is David Ziegele, former head of the Office of Underground Storage Tanks. It also includes Administration and Resources Management Chief Jon Cannon, Office of Solid Waste Director Michael Shapiro, Region X Administrator Chuck Clarke, and Deputy Assistant Administrator for. Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Sylvia Lowrance. The Work Group derives from the Budget Forum recently convened to plan resource allocations for coming years. WATER RESOURCES California/Folsom Dam Inspection and repair work is continuing at Folsom Dam, following the failure of one of its eight spillway gates on July 17. During routine operations, Gate NO.3 . buckled and broke, releasing 40,000 cubic feet of water per second. Over three weeks, water levels at Folsom lake dropped over 35 feet and more than 360,000 acre- feet (af) of water were lost downstream before the flow slowed and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation was able to lower a 107 -ton panel of steel beams into place to stop . the losses. Before the gate failure, Folsom was nearly full and stored 946,000 acre-feet of water. Fortunately, this has been a "wet" year in California, with reservoir storage statewide on July 1 at 34Maf or 120% of average and 91% of capacity. Besides the loss of water, the failure threatened recreationists on the lake and downstream. There was no loss of life, but campers and fishermen had to be alerted and for a time the lake was closed to boaters, with a pair of state parks officers patrolling the waters near the dam. A dramatic escape occurred when the officers' patrol boat motor failed and the two, after trying repeatedly to restart the engine unsuccessfully, abandoned the craft and swam to safety just minutes before it was carried over the spillway. The scene was captured and replayed by news crews. Careful inspections of the dam's remaining gates have revealed rust and corrosion, and what appear to be weakened nuts, bolts and welds. More temporary panels or "stop logs" are to be placed in front of two other gates so that they can be tested and opened and closed safely. Workers are also removing the twisted remains of Gate NO.3 and pieces will be examined by x- ray to try to determine the exact cause of the failure. The estimated cost of repairing and replacing the gates is as high as $15M. Meanwhile, Reclamation officials and inspectors reportedly recommended maintenance and repair work on the gates as far back as 1988, again in 1991, and again last year, but competition for limited federal funds delayed work until now. WATER RESOURCES 1995 Oregon Legislature The Oregon Water Resources Department has recently published a 'Summary of 1995 Water Legislation," which contains summaries of 35 measures enacted during the regular session of the 68th legislative Assembly. These