Posted on Jun 2, 2022
Indigenous farmer seeks solutions in drought-plagued Central Oregon
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The pond is full again at Upingaksraq Spring Alaska Schreiner’s high desert farm. It’s a welcome sight for Schreiner, who owns Sakari Farms north of Bend.
Last summer, as drought punished Central Oregon, Schreiner’s irrigation district stopped delivering water. She watched as the pond gradually disappeared, leaving a mud puddle behind.
“I cried last year when I walked through the dry canal,” Schreiner said. “I was pissed. I was like, ‘There’s nothing we can do.’”
Schreiner has rights to a little over two acre-feet of water, which makes its way to the farm from the Deschutes River through a series of pipes and canals.
She only got a fraction of that amount last year.
This year is looking worse.
Gov. Kate Brown has already declared drought emergencies in 16 Oregon counties, including Deschutes. That’s the most ever for this time of year, and Oregon farmers like Schreiner are on edge.
“I’m not sure how to cope with going in this year knowing that there’s less water or no water,” Schreiner said.
Last summer, as drought punished Central Oregon, Schreiner’s irrigation district stopped delivering water. She watched as the pond gradually disappeared, leaving a mud puddle behind.
“I cried last year when I walked through the dry canal,” Schreiner said. “I was pissed. I was like, ‘There’s nothing we can do.’”
Schreiner has rights to a little over two acre-feet of water, which makes its way to the farm from the Deschutes River through a series of pipes and canals.
She only got a fraction of that amount last year.
This year is looking worse.
Gov. Kate Brown has already declared drought emergencies in 16 Oregon counties, including Deschutes. That’s the most ever for this time of year, and Oregon farmers like Schreiner are on edge.
“I’m not sure how to cope with going in this year knowing that there’s less water or no water,” Schreiner said.
Indigenous farmer seeks solutions in drought-plagued Central Oregon
Posted from opb.org
Native Americans
Farming
Agriculture
Posted 2 y ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Sakari is almost fully planted and will only plant once this year. Farm workers Harrison Hill and Kobe Stites were busy putting bean starts in the ground on a hot Wednesday in late May.
“The water that we did have to start out the season isn’t always going to be here,” Hill said. “We’re going to have to learn how to use it most effectively.”
Schreiner said if the water’s shut off again, she’ll cut off the farm plot-by-plot and seek financial relief for failed crops.
Still, the plants’ resilience and that of the people who have grown those plants since time immemorial give Schreiner confidence — even in the face of Oregon’s drier future."...
..."Sakari is almost fully planted and will only plant once this year. Farm workers Harrison Hill and Kobe Stites were busy putting bean starts in the ground on a hot Wednesday in late May.
“The water that we did have to start out the season isn’t always going to be here,” Hill said. “We’re going to have to learn how to use it most effectively.”
Schreiner said if the water’s shut off again, she’ll cut off the farm plot-by-plot and seek financial relief for failed crops.
Still, the plants’ resilience and that of the people who have grown those plants since time immemorial give Schreiner confidence — even in the face of Oregon’s drier future."...
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