CENTRAL OREGON — A draft report published by attendees of the Deschutes Basin Water Summit hypothesizes that better water conservation by farmers in the Deschutes Basin over the next 20 years will offset the need for more water by a growing population in Central Oregon. Representatives from local cities, irrigation districts, federal agencies and other groups interested in water use attended the summit held in late May. Area farmers consume four to five times as much water per acre as the urban areas, said Bruce Aylward, water bank director for the Deschutes River Conservancy. The mitigation of groundwater needs by farmers will reduce their current draw of 90% of the rights to area water to 70% by 2025. |
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