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ARCO, Idaho (KIFI) – Idaho Department of Water Resources Director Mat Weaver has lifted the curtailment order on Butte County farmers through May 4th.

The decision means farmers in the Big Lost River and Little Lost River Basins will be able to water their crops for the next two weeks.

During that time, “good faith” negotiations will continue between the Idaho Ground Water Appropriators and the Surface Water Coalition over accepting three ground water districts in the Big Lost River and Little Lost River basins into the 2024 Mitigation Plan. 

Weaver’s decision only applies to farmers who are members of the ground water districts applying to join the plan.

Local News 8 spoke with representatives from both the SWC and IGWA before Weaver issued his decision.

“Those farmers out there – those growers – had their crops dying on the vine because it’s been a very dry, warm spring, and they have very rocky, kind of shallow soil,” said Idaho Ground Water Appropriators Chairwoman Stephanie Mickelsen. “So for them, this is the critical time where they may not end up with a crop if we don’t get this resolved.”

The Butte County farmers started the process to join the 2024 mitigation plan late last summer.

“They have to first set up a ground water district. Then they have to go hire an attorney,” Mickelsen explained. “All of this takes time because you have to have public notices and all those kind of legal requirements met in order to do that. So they have been working on this for a significant period of time.”

Tensions between the two groups culminated when Weaver declined to lift an order to cut off the Butte County farmers’ water on Thursday.

That decision brought both two groups of irrigators closer together, with negotiations continuing in earnest.

“I think over the next two weeks, we’ll continue to meet and discuss those and try and reach a resolution,” said Surface Water Coalition Attorney Travis Thompson. “That’s really the point for today is to agree to continue those good faith negotiations.”

On Friday afternoon, the traditional rivals – SWC and IGWA – jointly asked Weaver to allow Big Lost River and Little Lost River Water District farmers to continue to irrigate.

“Just some real hard work on both sides – attorneys getting together and trying to find a path forward for some negotiations to continue that dialogue,” Thompson said.

For full coverage of the latest developments, check out our article from Friday afternoon.

RELATED |  Surface Water Coalition, Groundwater Districts seek emergency stay on Butte Co. curtailment

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – Every summer, volunteers and the Reconnect Southeast Idaho organization work together to bring fun, education and performing arts to kids in Pocatello at the Constitution Camp. This year is extra special because it’s the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

This year’s camp is June 15-19 from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. On the Friday of the camp, the kids come back for a performance at 6 p.m. The entire community is invited to the free performance at Calvary Chapel on June 19. It will showcase all the history knowledge the campers learned throughout the week.

It takes over 60 volunteers to make the camp experience memorable for the children. Some are teachers from the community and others put on costumes to play historical heroes like George Washington. Throughout the week, the campers have countless hands-on learning opportunities.

“They rotate through stations and they do really fun activities like they march through the icy river with rags tied on their feet with George Washington,” said Michele Holyoak, Camp Director. “They learn what it’s like to live like a 17th century kid by feeding chickens and making bread and root beer.”

The week also includes practices for Friday’s performance, memorizing important documents like the preamble to the Constitution, and other crafts like sewing stars.

“This year, we decided that we wanted to celebrate as much of the 250 years as we could. So, instead of just learning about the revolution we are going to take them on a journey through the early colonists from the Mayflower all the way up to World War I and World War II,” said Holyoak.

The camp isn’t about the memorization of small details like dates of events in U.S. history, but rather to give children a memorable experience they’ll carry with them, as well as teach them valuable themes.

“The point is to get them to have an associated feeling with this country of patriotism and love and courage and freedom,” Holyoak said. “So that when they go out into their lives and into adulthood, that they remember that spirit of freedom and spirit of patriotism and love of country, and having these true heroes in their pockets.”

The camp expanded this year to accommodate 100 campers and there’s just under 30 spots remaining. In order to secure a T-shirt with registration, you must do so by April 30. For more information and how to register your child for Constitution Camp, visit reconnectsoutheastidaho.org.

REXBURG, Idaho (KIFI) – The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is suing the City of Rexburg for polluting the South Fork of the Teton River.

The DEQ’s action last week comes after pressure from two environmental groups.

In February, the Boise-based Idaho Conservation League and Snake River Waterkeeper notified Rexburg and Burley of the groups’ intent to sue for Clean Water Act violations at the cities’ wastewater treatment plants.

“We already have a river that has too much of certain pollutants, and so we really want to avoid exacerbating that – making that any worse,” Idaho Conservation League’s Regulatory Program Manager Will Tiedemann said.

The treated wastewater is discharged into the Teton and Snake Rivers.

In the last five years, Rexburg’s plant self-reported 45 violations for sediment, nitrogen and biological oxygen demand pollution exceeding federal standards.

“Sediment reduces water clarity and can harm aquatic life; nitrogen can act as a fertilizer promoting both nuisance and toxic algae growth; and biological oxygen demand is a measure of how quickly micro-organisms remove oxygen from water, which at high levels can kill fish,” the environmental non-profits stated in a news release.

Violations ranged from four percent to 2400 percent above legal limits, said Tiedemann.

This can be harmful to recreators, swimmers, fish and others using the Teton River.

In a statement to Local News 8, Rexburg Mayor Jerry Merill said, “The City of Rexburg is aware of the complaint filed by the DEQ and is actively working with the agency to address the issues identified.”

However, achieving compliance with the Clean Water Act standards could require upgrades costing millions of dollars.

“The City’s focus is on maintaining reliable infrastructure and ensuring its wastewater systems meet applicable standards,” Rexburg’s statement continues. “We are committed to identifying practical, cost-effective solutions and making the necessary improvements to serve our residents.”

The Mayor stated that “this filing is part of an established regulatory process that allows the City and the DEQ to work through compliance matters in a structured way and establish a clear path forward. … We will continue to collaborate and work with the DEQ as this process moves forward.”

Meanwhile, the Idaho Conservation League maintains that lawsuits are one of the most effective means to ensure compliance with the Clean Water Act, originally passed in the 1970s.

“We hope folks understand, and they believe in clean water just as much as we do,” Tiedemann said. “We hope that they want their city to come in compliance and treat, ultimately, their wastewater as a community, to have a happy, healthy community and a happy, healthy South Fork Teton and Snake River.”