Columbia Basin Development League plans March 4 speed conference

CASHMERE — The inventors of speed dating probably never imagined the creation of a “speed conference.”

But that’s what the Columbia Basin Development League will be holding on Thursday, March 4 – a two-hour, online annual conference.

The organization, which was formed in 1964 to support the ongoing Columbia Basin Project, has an ambitious agenda for the short morning meeting, and plans to cover a half-dozen topics from the economic impact of the project’s vast irrigation systems to funding for maintenance, improvements and expansion of the three existing canal systems.

“Well, frankly, the goal is just to touch on each of those topics. There’s no way we can dive deep into any of them,” said Sara Higgins, CBDL assistant director. “Part of the point is to keep stakeholders engaged, provide an update, and keep folks involved.”

The two-hour virtual conference takes the place of an all-day annual meeting normally held in the fall that was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Higgins said.

“We condensed it from a day-long event to under two hours,” she said. “We’re trying to be respectful of people’s time and the concept of Zoom fatigue.”

Scheduled conference topics include:

• “Economic Impact of the Columbia Basin Project” with Madison Moore, a Washington State University agricultural economist.

• “Partner Collaboration” with Marc Maynard of the Bureau of Reclamation Field Office in Ephrata.

• “A View from the Canals” with Dave Solem, secretary-manager of South Columbia Basin Irrigation District; Craig Simpson, secretary-manager of the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District; and Roger Sonnichsen, secretary-manager of the Quincy Columbia Basin Irrigation District.

• “Odessa Groundwater Replacement Program to Date” with Jed Crowther, development coordinator with the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District.

• “Steps to Complete the Columbia Basin Project” with Vicky Scharlau, executive director of the CBDL.

• “Washington Water Law and Secondary Use Permits” with Melissa Downes, technical and policy lead with the Department of Ecology’s Office of the Columbia River.

• “Water Infrastructure Funding” with Mike Schwisow, director of government relations for the CBDL; Laura Williams, the regional conservation partnership program coordinator with the USDA’s National Resource Conservation Service; and Ian Lyle, executive vice president of the National Water Resources Association in Washington, D.C.

While the conference is scheduled to start at 9 a.m., online logins to Zoom begin at 8:45. Registration cost is $40. To register, visit the CBDL’s website at www.cbdl.org/support/annual-conference or contact Higgins at 509-782-9442.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabasinherald.com.