tulelake Irrigation District

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NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY

Draft Watershed Plan Environmental Assessment- Tulelake Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization Project-Tule Lake, Mills Creek-Lost River, & Copic Bay Watersheds, Klamath County, Oregon, & Modoc and Siskiyou Counties, California

AGENCY: Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)

UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER: EAXX-005-53-006-1033536933.

ACTION: Notice of Availability for Draft Watershed Plan Environmental Assessment & Public Meeting

SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and the Natural Resources Conservation Service Regulations (7 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1b), the U.S. Department of Agriculture NRCS gives notice that an environmental impact statement is not being prepared for the Tulelake Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization Project, Klamath County, Oregon, Modoc and Siskiyou Counties, California.

A draft Watershed Plan-Environmental Assessment (Plan EA) was prepared and will be available for review on October 1, 2026 on project’s website: https://watershedplans.org/tulelake-id

The 30-day public review period for the draft EA extends from October 1, 2026 to October 31, 2026. All comments postmarked by October 31, 2026, will be considered and incorporated into the final EA, as appropriate. Specific responses will also be included in a comments and responses appendix to the final document.

To provide comments and/or further information regarding this notice, you can email commentsCAwatersheds@usda.gov or you can contact Richard Rivas, Natural Resources Conservation Service, 430 G Street Davis, CA 95616, by telephone and leave a voicemail at (530) 792-5510 (Attn: Small Watershed Program, Tulelake Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization Project).

A public meeting will also be held at UC Intermountain Research & Extension Center, 2816 Havlina Road, Tulelake, CA 96134, 1:00 pm to 2:00pm on October 19, 2026 to provide an additional opportunity for public comment.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The draft environmental assessment of this federally assisted action indicates that the Project will not cause significant local, regional, or national impacts on the environment. As a result of these findings, the State Conservationist, Carlos Suarez, has determined that the preparation and review of an environmental impact statement are not needed for this Project.

The purpose of this project is to improve agricultural water management and energy efficiency of District-managed infrastructure. In recent years, TID has faced droughts that have severely limited water supply to irrigators within the District and wildlife refuges. These water shortages and limited water deliveries are exacerbated due to constraints on the District’s ability to efficiently deliver irrigation water to patrons and manage water within its system. The need is to support TID in improving water conveyance efficiency and operation of District infrastructure to reduce water delivery and operational challenges.

The notice of availability of the Tulelake Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization Project Watershed Plan and Environmental Assessment has been forwarded to various federal, state, and local agencies and interested parties. This Watershed Plan and Environmental Assessment is also available in hard copy form

at the NRCS Tulelake Basin Project Office, 611 Main Street, Tulelake, CA 96134 and the Tulelake Irrigation District Office, 2816 Havlina Road, Tulelake, CA 96134 or can be downloaded from the following link. 

https://watershedplans.org/tulelake-id. Basic data developed during the environmental assessment are on file and may be reviewed through coordination with NRCS by calling (530) 792-5510 (Attn: Small Watershed Program, Tulelake Irrigation District Infrastructure Modernization project).

No administrative action on implementation of the proposal will be taken until 30 days after the date of this publication. Publication Date: October 1, 2026.

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September 4, 2026

CARLOS SUAREZ State Conservationist USDA-NRCS California

(This activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance under No. 10.904, Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention, and is subject to the provisions of Executive Order 12372, which requires intergovernmental consultation with state and local officials.)