June 26, 2017

Commissioner Schinhofen

was present in the Pahrump Chambers, and went on to say that Dan participated in the CNRWA Meeting and she wanted to recognize him in her presentation. Joni stated that the CNRWA Members met in regular session in Ely, Nevada on June 9th, 2017 and thought there were several items on that agenda that the Nye County Water June 26, 2017 NYE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD District would be interested in. Joni said maybe some of the presenters from that meeting would be interested in making presentations to the Water District Governing Board. Joni stated; Laural Sato who has a Doctorate in Hydrology, and is the Program Director for the Nature Conservancy in the Nevada Field Office gave a presentation on June 9th. Laural shared information on Ash Meadows and the Amargosa River Hydrology. Joni also stated that Nyle Pennington is under contract with the CNRWA to work on its Groundwater Monitoring Program. The objective of the program is to collect on annual basis, water level measurements from 51 wells in 12 groundwater basins. These 51 wells were selected in concert with USGS and the NDWR. In Nye County CNRWA is monitoring 5 wells in 137a and 137b in Big Smokey Valley, 6 wells in Railroad Valley’s Hydrologic Areas 173a and 173b, making it a total of 9 wells in Nye County. Joni stated there were noticeable water level changes in Railroad Valley due in part because of groundwater pumping and the drought. In Railroad Valley there was a 2.3ft drop that was determined to be due to an alfalfa operation that was started in Railroad Valley. Joni added that all the Hydrographs for the wells in the Groundwater Monitoring Program are on the NDWR website, which has been updated. Joni stated there were 29 water related bills that went before the Legislature and Assembly Bill 298 was of particular interest to the CNRWA. CNRWA feared that the bill was going to be amended into 2 other bills but, did not pass. It was a bill being supported by SNRWA that said if the State Engineer processed an application to appropriate groundwater and if there is a conflict between an application and the existing Water Right Holder or Domestic Well Owner the conflict had to be resolved to the satisfaction of the existing water rights holder before the State Engineer could consider approving the application. The CNRWA members were concerned because it was not consistent with constitutional protections for private property, including protections for due process and protections against takings. Assembly Bill 209 Passed sponsored by assemblyman Oscarson, revised the criteria, requiring under certain circumstances, the State Engineer to extend the time period necessary to work a forfeiture and certain water rights. Oz asked Joni if she would go down the list of legislative bills included in the back-up, and indicate if the bill passed or failed. Joni agreed. Assembly Bill 138 Passed sponsored by assembly Meg Carlton, authorizing the de minimus collection of precipitation for non-potable domestic use and under certain circumstances to provide water to wildlife. Senate Bill 47 Passed This bill was requested by the Division of Water Resources, which State Engineer to prepare a water budget and inventory of groundwater for each basin in the state declaring the policy of the state to manage conjunctively all sources of water in the state, revising provisions related to certain applications to appropriate water. Joni stated; no part of Assembly Bill 298 was amended into this legislation, contrary to what was heard in the early days of the legislative session. Senate Bill 51 Passed This Bill, requested by the Division of Water Resources, is related to the adjudication of certain water rights. June 26, 2017 NYE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD Senate Bill 74 Passed This bill, requested by the Division of Water Resources, provides provisions relating to a plan of water conservation. Joni added, this bill is strictly limited to the Humboldt River Basin. This bill basically provided for, the fees that were generated by water rights holders in that basin to go back into the General Fund, allowing for the work to be paid for by the Division of Water Resources. Senate Bill 270 Passed This bill was requested by the Legislative Commission Subcommittee to study water. This bill required the claimant of pre statutory water rights to submit proof of claim to the State Engineer on or before December 31, 2027 and requiring the State Engineer to provide certain notice of the requirement. If the claimant fails to submit such proof, the claim is deemed to be abandoned. Joni stated, that Senator Pete Goicoechea indicated there would probably be amendments to this bill before the deadline. Joni stated, of the 29 water related bills, 6 of them passed. Ken Searles asked Joni if there was any success in getting the information from the CNRWA on their position relating to water legislation and the Water District. Joni replied that the CNRWA is well respected in the state, was taken seriously, and had excellent representation by Steve Bradhurst. Oz stated that when a bill is presented to legislature, it is presented in the best way possible, and nobody gets their way 100% of the time. Oz stated that the deadline for filing a proof of vested right is going to have a very significant impact on the agricultural community and ranchers because of the many years of document transfers involved. Chairman Dave Hall thanked Joni for her involvement in the CNRWA and the information forwarded to the Water District.

Commissioner John

Koenig reminded the Board that the agenda item was noted as a presentation, and a motion cannot be accepted, because it is not an action item. Oz stated that it was a misstep on his part and will bring it back on the agenda on August 7, 2017 as an action item. Oz also asked the Board Members if they had any objections to the budget. Chairman Dave Hall made the comment that the budget encompassed all the operating expenses that were talked about, but addressed the possibility of requiring outside help on some projects and where that money would come from. Oz stated that some water sampling is being done in Belmont and he will meet with representatives from NDEP on Wednesday June 28, 2017. Oz will potentially sample 7 domestic wells and 3-4 spring locations and NDEP will share in the costs. Nitrates will be the focus of the sampling. Oz told the domestic well owners that the Water District will pay for the first round of sampling. The result of one well test revealed Nitrates were present, but still met the safe drinking water standards set by NDEP. Oz then met with the well owners and informed them of the sample information and pointed them to additional information online about the hazards of Nitrates. Oz recommended that they continue to sample their well a couple times a year and further stated that he will work with Nye County Public Works, and when their Water Operator is in the area sampling, the Public Works Operator will pull the sample for the folks and the well owner can pay for it. Oz stated this is about a density of domestic wells in close proximity of each other. Chairman Dave Hall turned his attention to a $50,000 budget line Item for Engineering Reports/Grants App. Oz stated he will cover that in the Shaw Report under agenda Item #15. June 26, 2017 NYE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD Chairman Dave Hall asked the Board if they had any comments. Ken Searles thanked Commissioner John Koenig for alerting to the oversight on Ken Searles motion to approve the Water District Detailed Budget and enter it into EDEN as presented.

Commissioner John

Koenig stated that the motion can be rescinded if the second is also rescinded, and recommended that the motion include review and decision by DWR. Dennis Gaddy rescinded the motion as seconded and Ken Searles rescinded his original motion to approve the Water Impact Plan of Nye Farm Tech as presented. Ken Searles made another motion to table the Water Impact Plan until feedback is given from DWR on the issue whether they can use the Domestic Well for the Commercial Business. Chairman Dave Hall stated; it can be approved under the condition of review by DWR. Ken Searles made a motion to approve the Water Impact Plan tentatively, providing feedback is given by DWR regarding use of a Domestic Well for a Commercial Entity. Dennis Gaddy seconded the motion. The vote passed 4-0. During Public Comment, Dwight Lilly stated, he would not want to see people having to purchase Water Rights for the purpose of selling produce at the Farmers Market, or to change what they have been doing historically for years providing they stay within the 2AF annually. Ken Searles concurred with Dwight Lilly over the concern of purchasing Water Rights for sales from products produced on the property in which a person lives. During Public Comment Gregory Hafen stated that he concurred with John Bosta and Darrell Lacy in regards to Water Rights needed for this project, and added this is clearly a Commercial Project and they will be required by DWR to acquire Water Rights. June 26, 2017 NYE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD Gregory recommended the Water District Governing Board understand as such, and move forward with the application in that direction. Gregory also added for further clarification, there was a time when you could convert your Domestic Well to 2AF of Commercial Water Rights, but in the last 5 years DWR issued a ruling or order that stopped the ability to do that. In other Basins that can still be done, but in Basin 162, Water Rights now have to be acquired. Oz made a clear distinction to the applicants; you can’t just go and file for Water Rights, you need to purchase them and file a change order to move them to a Domestic Well in Basin 162. Gregory Hafen stated; officially you could file for Water Rights, but it is likely that it would be denied. Oz was confident that DWR would suggest to the applicant to purchase Water Rights and file a change order to move them to a Domestic Well. Ken Searles thought this motion will set a precedent with regards to addressing similar issues. John Koenig stated that this issue should have been caught at the County Commissioner level when the permit was approved.

Commissioner John

Koenig stated that he would feel more comfortable if it were on the agenda for the next meeting. Planning Director Darrell Lacy stated; when he was General Manager of the Water District, approving the Project Budget was reassuring, in a way that he could spend the money that was allocated to those accounts. The consensus by all was that the Project Budget would be brought back on the next agenda as an Action Item. b. Board Reports I. LVVWD/SNWA II. CNRWA – Dan Schinhofen c. Staff Reports I. Oz Wichman Oz reminded the Board; some water sampling is being done in Belmont and he will meet with representatives from NDEP on Wednesday June 28, 2017. Oz stated he will keep the Board informed of the progress and one well revealed the presence of Nitrates. II. John Klenke d. Projects Status Report I. Staff June 26, 2017 NYE COUNTY WATER DISTRICT GOVERNING BOARD e. Board Liaison Reports I. Commissioner John Koenig John reminded the Board that at the next BoCC meeting held in Pahrump, the BoCC will discuss the direction they think the Water District should go. John expressed his dislike of some of the obstruction pertaining to the Water District, stating; either be a part of the problem or a part of the solution. He said; the Water District has a job to do and do not get in the way of any progress the Water District can make. John stated the average well recedes over 100 ft. and the average production well goes down even further and “We are sucking out 5,000 AF more water than we are putting in. We need to figure a way to stop this; if this isn’t stopped we will be sucking air”. John added that the Shaw Report indicated we are behind the curve now we have to do something to fix the problem. f. Report from other individuals, groups and or agencies regarding water- related Issues; for informational purposes only. I. Darrell Lacy Planning Director Darrell Lacy stated there is one Commercial Septic System in Belmont and we have regulatory authority of OSDS. Darrell stated that it is old and he is trying to figure out the permitting. The owners of the bar, own the septic, and were supposed to have it pumped out and verify that it was functioning properly. Darrell stated the challenge in Towns like Belmont, is that the lots are small and when building takes place, this creates a high density of wells in a small geographic area. Darrell will be working with Oz, DWR, NDEP, and the State Department of Health to identify and resolve any and all problems in that area. Planning Director Darrell Lacy also added there are 12 marijuana cultivation facilities, 6 extraction production facilities, and one dispensary in Pahrump. The cultivation facilities are the ones with the largest water usage. There is a lot more cultivation production capabilities than there are people with medical cards. The use of recreational marijuana will be available in the State starting July 1st, 2017. The transportation of marijuana must be carried out by a licensed liquor distributor. Darrell stated that all the marijuana facilities are required to provide an annual report declaring the amount of water used, are metered, and a water sample must be taken every year to analyze water quality. Darrell stated there have been discussions regarding Industrial Hemp, a non- regulated version of marijuana with a THC factor of less than 0.3%, and is used for fiber and the oils for health care products. Growers in Nye County will increase from 2 this year to 4-5 next year and in some cases it is replacing alfalfa which requires less water. The growing and production of Hemp is a fairly new crop for Nye County and in its early stages of regulation.